Datum Reports 27% Profit Decline

Datum Inc., an Anaheim manufacturer of precision timing devices, reported second-quarter earnings of $252,000, a 27% decline from $344,000 during the same period a year earlier. Quarterly sales reached a record $7 million, up 20% from $5.8 million in 1986.

For the six months ended June 30, Datum’s profits were $469,000, down 17% from the previous year’s $563,000. Six-month sales increased 26% to $13.5 million from $10.7 million.

The company attributed its lower earnings to higher costs in its Timing Operations unit and the inclusion in this year’s results of Spectrum Technology, an oscillator manufacturer in Goleta acquired in mid-1986.