Meade Instruments Stock Plummets to 52-Week Low

Meade Instruments Corp.’s stock tumbled to a 52-week low Friday after the Irvine maker of telescopes and accessories said its fiscal third-quarter profit and sales will fall below forecasts because of lower demand and the weakness of the euro against the dollar. The shares fell to $9.25, the lowest price over the past year, before closing at $10.25, down $4.81, or 32% for the day. Meade said earnings could be as low as 40 cents a share for the three months ending Nov. 30. Analysts were expecting earnings of 66 cents a share, according to a survey by First Call/Thomson Financial. The company also said sales are expected to change little or fall by as much as 15% from $63.7 million a year ago.