AST Research said it expects to report...

AST Research said it expects to report record fiscal third-quarter revenues and its first year-to-year quarterly earnings increase in almost two years. In a preliminary financial release Thursday, the Irvine-based computer company said it expects its fiscal third-quarter earnings to be up 38% to $4.69 million from year-ago earnings of $3.4 million. AST said it anticipates earnings of 40 cents per share for the quarter ended March 31, compared to per-share earnings of 29 cents a year ago. Before the latest quarter, AST’s profits had declined from the prior year for seven consecutive periods. The decline has come despite surging sales. AST also reported record quarterly revenues of $105 million, up about 90% from $55.4 million a year ago. AST attributed the strong sales gain to “excellent market demand� for its line of IBM-compatible personal computers. AST’s final third-quarter figures are due to be released in about two weeks.