Finance and Economic

Allied Healthcare Products Inc. said Thursday its profit dropped 21 percent in the fourth quarter due to slight delays in manufacturing and higher material and labor costs.

It made $690,000, or 9 cents per share, for the quarter ending June 30, down from $870,000, or 11 cents per share, a year earlier.

Sales for the fourth quarter increased by 5 percent to $14.7 million, compared to $14 million last year.

Sales for the entire fiscal year were close to the previous year, totaling about $56.4 million for 2008 and $56.5 million for 2007.

Manufacturing delays meant that some customer orders were not filled and could not be translated into sales revenue in 2008 payday loans. Also, material costs — primarily metals and oil-based resins — increased by about 2 percent and labor costs by about 3.8 percent over last year, the company said.

A “modest” overall price increase by Allied could not offset the year's higher material and labor costs, the company said.

St. Louis-based Allied Healthcare Products Inc. (Nasdaq: AHPI) manufactures respiratory care products, medical gas equipment and emergency medical products.

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