-Rambus ($44) under Street forecasts, shrs fall 9 percent
(Includes background and updated share price, previous LOS
ALTOS)
SAN FRANCISCO., Jan 11 (Reuters) - Rambus Inc. <RMBS.O>,
the developer of technology to speed the performance of memory
chips, reported first-quarter operating results on Thursday
slightly below expectations because of higher tax payments.
The Los Altos, Calif.-based company also cautioned that
price pressure on memory chips will make it hard to grow
revenues in the current quarter unless it can sign other
companies on to pay royalties for its designs.
Shares in Rambus fell 9 percent in after-hours trading to
$43-7/8. The stock had climbed 6 percent to $48-57/64 on
regular Nasdaq trading on Thursday before the announcement.
Rambus said its tax rate for fiscal 2000 rose to 40 percent
from 35 percent the year earlier.
With the higher tax rate, operating income was $13.2
million or 12 cents per diluted share. If the previous 35
percent tax rate were still applicable, earnings for the
quarter would have been 13 cents per share, the company said.
Analysts' average forecast as compiled by First Call/Thomson
Financial was for 13 cents a share.
In the year-earlier quarter, Rambus had net income of $2.6
million, or 3 cents per share.
Revenues for the quarter ending December 31 were $34.7
million, up 191 percent from the same quarter last year, and up
29 percent from the previous quarter. This included a 35
percent sequential gain in royalties that took those payments
to $26.8 million.
The first-quarter results included the first royalty
payments from Samsung <69500.KS> and Mitsubishi for SDRAM
(synchronous dynamic random access memory) patents. Rambus is
collecting patents from a number of other memory makers,
including NEC, Toshiba, and Hitachi.
Rambus also has pending lawsuits against three other memory
manufacturers, Hyundai Electronics Industry <00660.KS>, Micron
Technology Inc. <MU.N>, and Infineon Tech <IFXGn.DE> from whom
it is seeking royalties.
"With the price decreases for SDRAMs in the December
quarter, it is unlikely that royalties for these products in
our next (March) quarter will exceed the levels included in
this report unless we sign additional licensees," said Chief
Executive Geoff Tate in a statement.
Rambus was also facing increased expenses due to legal fees
for its ongoing patent disputes and new facilities, Tate said.
Since peaking at $127 last June, Rambus shares have fallen
around 65 percent.
((Eric Lai, San Francisco bureau, 415/677-3919))
REUTERS
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