Altos Computer Corp, San Jose, for so long near to being a dominant force in the Unix market without ever quite breaking into the top tier, has stumbled again. The company warns that it expects to report that net sales for its fiscal first quarter to September 24 will be lower than it anticipated, and down on the $40.6m reported for its first quarter last year, when it did $2.2m net. As a result, the company expects to report a loss on operations for the period, but sale of Communications Solutions Inc will pull its chestnuts out of the fire and give make it profitable on a net income basis. Altos attributes the shortfall in sales to a general slowdown in domestic UK market channels and to the seasonal character of its international business.
