Jul. 23--Local technology companies Ramtron International and Spectranetics both cut second-quarter losses from the previous quarter, with both saying continued improvement is likely the rest of the year.

Spectranetics said Thursday it narrowed second-quarter losses by 29 percent from the previous quarter and 24 percent from a year earlier, while sales were up 6.3 percent from the previous quarter and 8.7 percent from a year ago.

The Colorado Springs-based medical laser manufacturer lost $2.01 million, or 6 cents a share, compared with losses totaling $2.64 million, or 8 cents a share, a year ago, as revenue rose $2.3 million to $29 million. Losses for the first half of the year were $4.84 million, or 15 cents a share, compared with $3.05 million, or 10 cents a share, during the same period in 2008. Revenue during the same period grew 11.5 percent, to $56.3 million.

Much of the loss resulted from $1.4 million spent on a year-old federal investigation into the company's marketing and use of imported parts in its lasers and beefing up its regulatory compliance system. Company officials said Thursday that those expenses "are largely behind us" but offered no update on when they expect to resolve the investigation.

Ramtron lost $302,000, or 1 cent a share, during the April-to-June quarter, compared with a profit of $779,000, or 3 cents a share, during the same quarter a year earlier. The company would have been profitable without a $327,000 restructuring charge related to a 21-person layoff in March, despite a 29 percent drop in revenue from a year earlier, to $11 million, as recession-battered customers in many industries reduced purchases.

The company's second-quarter losses were a fraction of the $6.41 million, or 24 cents a share, lost in the first quarter as a result of $5.8 million in restructuring charges. For the year, losses have amounted to $6.71 million, or 25 cents a share. Revenue during the six-month period was down 27.9 percent from a year ago to $21.5 million.

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