MU shares fall 5% to $30/shr on $266 million loss
By Chris Kraeuter, CBS.MarketWatch.com
Last Update: 6:16 PM ET Dec. 18, 2001
BOISE, Idaho (CBS.MW) -- Micron Technology's first-quarter loss was larger than expected late Tuesday as the memory-chip maker's average selling price fell by 24 percent sequentially.
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In late trading, shares (MU: news, chart, profile) fell 5 percent to $30.20 after ending up 3.6 percent at $31.81.
Micron reported a first-quarter net loss of $266 million, or 44 cents a share, on revenue of $424 million. The loss includes inventory write-downs of $173 million, or 18 cents a share. During the same quarter one year ago, Micron reported net income of $360 million, or 59 cents a share, on revenue of $1.57 billion.
Micron was expected to lose 39 cents a share on revenue of $471.2 million, on average, according to analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial/First Call.
The company's average selling price fell 24 percent sequentially and 88 percent compared with last year's first quarter.
During the last half of the quarter, though, demand and average selling prices increased. This increase has continued past the end of the quarter, which was Nov. 29, according to executives during a conference call.
The demand and price increase has been concurrent with a traditionally strong business period.
Flash memory shipments have resumed to wireless handset providers.
Megabit shipments increased 20 percent sequentially and 130 percent compared with last year's first quarter.
At the end of the period, cash and short-term investments totaled $1.7 billion.
Earlier on Tuesday, Micron announced it would buy a U.S. DRAM plant from Toshiba, which is exiting the memory market. This was seen as a coup because competitor Infineon had been negotiating about some sort of alliance with Toshiba for the past two months.
CEO Steve Appleton said during late Tuesday's conference call that the deal should close during the current quarter.
Also, Micron remains in discussions with financially troubled Hynix, the third-largest maker of DRAM chips in the world.
Chris Kraeuter is a reporter for CBS.MarketWatch |
