Datum Points to Soft Sales, Expects First-Quarter Loss

Datum Inc., suffering a string of setbacks, said it expects to report a first-quarter loss of 30 cents a share on sales of $20 million to $22 million.

A year earlier, Datum earned 26 cents a share on $28.7 million in sales.

The company, which makes equipment used to time the flow of data in phone networks, blamed the expected loss for the quarter ending March 31 on the Asian economic crisis, which has resulted in a reduction in some orders. It also cited soft sales of certain products to some of its major customers.

In late January, the company dismissed about 40 employees, or 6% of its work force. The move came after Datum’s biggest customer, Lucent Technologies Inc., changed its production system, forcing Datum to hold up shipments until the parts are actually needed.

In the fourth quarter of 1997, Datum earned 1 cent a share, or $55,000, as sales declined 30% to $22.1 million, far lower than earlier projections by analysts.

“We are seeing a continuation of the irregular shipping patterns that affected Datum in the fourth quarter of 1997,” Chief Executive Louis B. Horwitz said in announcing that the company expects to report a first-quarter loss.

However, Horwitz said the problems reflect overall industry trends, rather than a deteriorating market share for Datum.

The company announced the expected quarterly loss after the stock market closed Monday. The stock, which had hit a high of $49.50 a share last year before Datum’s troubles surfaced, closed Monday at $15.25, down 50 cents, on the Nasdaq market.