very strong earning report.
Next one will be more incredible...
Earning leverage on this company is simply unbelievable !
Tuesday April 18, 4:00 pm Eastern Time
Company Press Release
Lam Research Corporation Announces Fiscal 2000 Third Quarter Results
Profits and Orders Set New Company Records
FREMONT, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 18, 2000--Lam Research Corporation (Nasdaq: LRCX - news) today
announced financial results for the fiscal quarter ended March 26, 2000. Revenues were $326.3 million and net income,
including the benefit of a restructuring charge reversal of $18.9 million, was $67.0 million, or $ 0.48 per diluted share. Sales for the period were 113 percent higher
than the prior year's third quarter and 13 percent greater than the quarter ended December 26, 1999. Excluding the restructuring charge reversal, net income for
the period reached record levels at $50.7 million, or $0.37 per diluted share. This compares to a net loss of $14.7 million, or $(0.13) per diluted share for the
corresponding quarter ended March 31, 1999.
New orders for March exceeded the prior quarter's orders by more than 25 percent, resulting in an expansion of backlog to an all time high. Geographic orders
distribution was as follows: North America, 26 percent; Europe, 23 percent; Japan, 14 percent; and Asia Pacific, 37 percent.
Revenues increased in all regions from the prior year's corresponding quarter. Geographic sales distribution for the quarter was as follows: North America, 23
percent; Europe, 32 percent; Japan, 15 percent; and Asia Pacific, 30 percent.
After excluding the restructuring charge reversal, gross margins increased to 44.2 percent of revenues, and operating expenses of $87.0 million continued to
decline as a percentage of total sales, driven by cost reduction programs and ongoing emphasis on productivity improvements.
``The fundamentals that have been driving the industry's recovery remain intact - limited capacity for leading edge 0.25 and 0.18 micron devices and the move to
new materials, including copper and low-k. In addition, the industry has begun to make plans to initiate early pilot lines in support of the move to 300 mm wafers.
These forces are converging at a time when basic commodity semiconductors, such as dynamic RAM and flash memory devices, are expected to be in short
supply. All of these elements combined have led to a strong rebound in the semiconductor capital equipment market,' stated James W. Bagley, Lam's chairman
and chief executive officer.
``Lam is in the best position in the history of the company to maximize the opportunities available. Our next-generation CMP and etch products are gaining market
share, our business processes are enabling our lean initiatives, and our level of customer trust is increasing,' continued Bagley. ``In addition, the successful
implementation of our corporate-wide enterprise resource planning system is a key milestone for the company and highlights our commitment to business practices
and processes that are the hallmarks of a world-class organization,' Bagley concluded.
This press release contains certain forward-looking statements which are subject to the Safe Harbor provisions created by the Private Securities Litigation Reform
Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements relate to, but are not limited to, the prospective demand for the company's products, acceptance, market share and
competitiveness of the company's products and market transition to new processes, the company's plans and objectives for future operations and product
development, and continued capital spending in the semiconductor industry. Such statements are based on current expectations and are subject to risks,
uncertainties, and changes in condition and other risks detailed in documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, specifically the report
on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1999 and the Form 10-Q for the quarter ended December 26, 1999, which could cause actual results to vary from
current expectations. The company undertakes no obligation to update the information in this press release.
Lam Research Corporation is a leading supplier of front-end wafer processing equipment and services to the worldwide semiconductor manufacturing industry.
The company's common stock trades on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbol ``LRCX'. Lam's World Wide Web address is lamrc.com. |
