National Semi ($17)
cuts 1st-qtr rev forecast
(Adds details, background)
SANTA CLARA, Calif., Aug 1 (Reuters) - National
Semiconductor Corp., a maker of chips for cell phones,
flat-panel displays and other electronics devices, warned on
Thursday fiscal first-quarter revenue will be unchanged from
the fourth quarter due to a weak personal computer market.
Santa Clara, California-based National Semiconductor
<NSM.N> recorded revenue of $419.5 million in the fourth
quarter and $339.3 million in the year-ago first quarter.
Analysts had forecast revenue of $441.4 million for the
first quarter ending in August, according to tracking firm
Thomson First Call.
When National Semiconductor reported fourth-quarter results
June 6, it said it expected revenue to rise 6 percent to 8
percent from fourth-quarter levels.
National Semiconductor joined a host of other companies
tied to the personal computer market, including graphics
chipmaker Nvidia Corp. <NVDA.O>, that have changed guidance or
said the PC market was weak. PC sales in the second quarter
were weaker than the seasonal norm, and companies are now
waiting for the back-to-school shopping season later this
summer.
National Semiconductor has said it gets about 10 percent of
its revenue from selling chips to the PC and PC-related
industries.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. <2330.TW>, the
world's largest contract chipmaker, last week issued a cautious
forecast and cut capital spending plans due in part to a
weaker-than-expected PC market.
Intel Corp. <INTC.O>, the world's biggest maker of
processors used to power PCs, said July 16 it had not seen any
indication that corporations were replacing aging PCs.
National Semiconductor said order rates, including turns
orders, were lower than expected in June, particularly for PC
and related peripherals, such as traditional computer monitors
and flat-panel displays. Turns orders are customer orders
requested for delivery in the same quarter as they were placed.
Shares of National Semiconductor fell 98 cents, or 5.4
percent, to $17.13 on the New York Stock Exchange in regular
U.S. trading before the revenue warning. After the close,
shares slipped to $16.
((--Duncan Martell, San Francisco bureau, 415 677-2536,
duncan.martell@reuters.com))
REUTERS
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