Datum Braces for a Drop

Datum Inc. The maker of computer subsystems said Tuesday that its annual earnings will be much lower than expected because it will take charges of about $350,000 against fourth-quarter earnings.

The company said its earnings were impacted by a consolidation and redesign of some product lines and by delays in shipments during the fourth quarter.

The Anaheim company said it now expects a “modest profit” for the year that still will be an improvement over the $2.2-million loss reported for 1992. Datum didn’t say when its official results will be released. But when they are, it said, the numbers will show that annual sales rose 6% and that fourth-quarter revenue climbed 11%.