Comtech Telecom shares fall more than 14% after stock offering

Shares of Comtech Telecommunications Corp. fell more than 14 percent to $13.83 Friday after the company priced a 7.15 million-share stock offering $2.11 lower than Thursday’s closing price of $16.11.

Michael Porcelain, chief financial officer and senior vice president of the Melville-based maker of advanced communications equipment for military and civilian markets, said the $14 per share offering swelled the number of shares outstanding, previously at 16.5 million, by 43 percent.

The executive said it’s not unusual for small-capitalization companies to price such deals below the market price.

“It’s in the normal range for a small-cap company,” he said. “There was strong demand. The deal was oversubscribed.”

Porcelain said that $75 million of the $100 million in proceeds will be used to pay down debt and the remaining $25 million will be used for acquisitions and general corporate purposes.

The offering, made through lead underwriters Citigroup and Jefferies LLC, is scheduled to close on June 22.

By Ken Schachter

kenneth.schachter@newsday.comkschach

Ken Schachter covers corporate news, including technology and aerospace, and other business topics for Newsday. He has also worked at The Miami Herald and The Jerusalem Post.