Daktronics 4Q profit falls 94 percent

Daktronics Inc., whose electronic scoreboards and video displays are sold worldwide, reported a 94 percent drop in its fourth-quarter profit Tuesday as the economic downturn led to a pullback in commercial and international business orders.

Daktronics shares fell $1.04, or 11.3 percent, to $8.18 in morning trading.

The Brookings, S.D.-based company reported net income of $344,000, or 1 cent per share, for the quarter ended May 2, compared with $5.7 million, or 14 cents per share, last year.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected, on average, a profit of 9 cents per share.

Net sales fell 6 percent to $121.8 million, missing Wall Street's $125 million estimate.

Jim Morgan, Daktronics' president and chief executive, said the company is working diligently to decrease expenses, including reductions in personnel and limitations on capital expenditures.