Irvine-based Meade Instruments Corp. saw a drop in sales and a wider loss for the quarter ended August 31, the company said Tuesday.
The maker of telescopes and other optical gear said sales declined 3.1% to $21.9 million during the quarter, compared to a year ago. Meade’s net loss grew to $1.5 million during the quarter, up from a loss of $900,000 in the year-ago period.
Shares of the company were up 8.9% to $2.68 in trading Tuesday.
The company blamed the loss on problems at an Asian plant that makes its new riflescopes. Many of the company’s less-expensive telescopes and its binoculars and riflescopes are manufactured in China, Taiwan, Korea, Philippines and Japan, according to a company filing.
“We are obviously disappointed with the results of the second quarter,” said Steven Murdock, Meade’s chief executive. “We have experienced serious supply problems from the Asian factory that makes the vast majority of our newly designed Simmons riflescopes.”
Although the company expects to have the problems resolved by February, “we will not be able to recapture sales that have already been lost,” Murdock said.
The company estimated it would lose about $900,000 during the current 12-month-period year,about the same as last year,on a 7% rise in sales to $120 million.
