KLAC ($48-$59) P/E 24... Beats & warns... Reports Q2 (Dec) earnings of $0.25, a penny better than the Multex consensus of $0.24; revenues were $404.1 mln vs the consensus of $377.6 mln. Company says that it "observed a major trend this quarter that is favorable for our future growth."
Update -- On their Q2 earnings conference call, the CFO projected Q3 orders should grow 10% sequentially with revs of approx $330-$350 mln, with EPS of $0.14-$0.16, about in line with rev est of $343.06 mln but lower than EPS
consensus of $0.17.
Wednesday January 23, 6:25 pm Eastern Time
KLA-Tencor second-quarter profit falls 38 percent
(UPDATE: Adds outlook, updates share price)
SAN JOSE, Calif., Jan 23 (Reuters) - KLA-Tencor Corp. (NasdaqNM:KLAC - news), a maker of measurement and testing devices used by microchip manufacturers, on Wednesday reported that fiscal second-quarter earnings fell 38 percent and said it was cautious about the future despite some positive signs.
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KLA-Tencor said earnings in the quarter ending in December fell to $49 million, or 25 cents per share, from $79 million, or 41 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter. Revenues were $404 million, down from $500.8 million in the year-ago quarter.
Analysts had expected earnings in a range of 22 cents to 26 cents a share, with a mean estimate of 24 cents, according to a survey of 23 analysts by research firm Thomson Financial/First Call. They estimated sales of $380 million.
In November, KLA-Tencor warned that its second-quarter profits would miss earlier estimates of 29 cents a share, citing weaker economic conditions.
Chief Financial Officer John Kispert forecast in a conference call with investors that the company would earn 14-16 cents per share in the third quarter on sales of $330 million to $350 million, with orders rising 10 percent from the December quarter.
That compared with Wall Street expectations of earnings between 8 and 27 cents per share on $360 million in sales.
``Our visibility regarding the recovery of the world economy and a resumption in the demand in semiconductors is still limited, though we are encouraged by a number of signs that indicate stabilization in our customers' businesses,'' he said.
``The long-term fundamentals driving our industry are compelling, however we remain cautious in our outlook given the uncertainty surrounding the next few quarters.''
Executives pointed to rising capacity use at some microchip makers and better-than-expected holiday sales of personal computers as evidence that customers' business could recover.
Shares of KLA-Tencor, like many technology companies, rose sharply in the last three months of 2001 and have wavered this year, with analysts saying investors were searching for proof that the economy was improving to justify higher stock prices.
The stock fell in after-hours trade to $50.30 from a close $51.50 on the Nasdaq, where it had risen $3.64, or 7.6 percent, during the day ahead of the release of the quarterly results. |
