Cymer Updates First Quarter 2003 Operating Guidance
Wednesday March 12, 4:30 pm ET
biz.yahoo.com
SAN DIEGO, March 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Cymer, Inc. (Nasdaq: CYMI - News), the world's leading supplier of excimer light sources used in semiconductor manufacturing, today announced that the company expects operating results for the first quarter of 2003 to be at the low end of the range of guidance announced in the company's January 28, 2003 press release and conference call.
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Bob Akins, Cymer's chairman and chief executive officer, noted, "In general, the pace of business in the first quarter has proved to be slightly slower than we originally anticipated. We now expect first quarter 2003 revenue to be at the low end of the $71,000,000 to $74,000,000 range, with foreign currency adjusted average selling prices at the low end of the $810,000 to $825,000 range. Due to higher than originally forecasted initial materials costs for our new XLA 100 light source, the first argon fluoride version of our revolutionary Master Oscillator Power Amplifier (MOPA)-based product line, gross margin for the first quarter is now expected to be in the range of 27 percent to 30 percent, down from our original guidance of 31 percent to 34 percent. First quarter research and development (R&D) expenditures are now expected to be at the low end of the range of $17,500,000 to $19,000,000 for the quarter, and selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses are now also expected to be at the low end of the range of $9,500,000 to $10,500,000. Due to global economic uncertainty and poor industry visibility, we have reduced our estimated annual effective tax rate for 2003 to zero percent, from previous guidance of 10 percent. We are currently scheduled to report results for the first quarter of 2003 at about 1:30 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time on Tuesday, April 22, 2003."
Commenting on Cymer's most advanced light source, Akins said, "Ramping up any new product is always challenging, and the complexity of a product like the XLA 100 adds to the challenges we normally face. We have been working to improve our own efficiency and that of our suppliers as we move down the manufacturing learning curve together. We are confident that we will overcome short-term production and materials challenges over the next couple of quarters and achieve normalized costs and greatly improved efficiencies. We announced previously that we shipped the first XLA 100 on schedule on February 1. This revolutionary light source is clearly delivering the higher power, tighter bandwidth and lower cost of operation that the industry demands, and orders we have received to date have met our aggressive expectations. Our customers continue to embrace the MOPA architecture as the next generation light source driver for their high numerical aperture lithography tools."
Turning to the outlook and general business conditions, Akins concluded, "Visibility, even for technology buys, remains limited, while short-term volatility in the semiconductor industry complicates our forecasting process. We now expect our book-to-bill ratio for the first quarter of 2003 will be below one. We continue to operate under tight cost controls, and the results of these efforts are evident in our expected low R&D and SG&A expense levels in this first quarter. We are closely monitoring industry and economic conditions, and are positioning ourselves to take advantage of the upturn when it does occur."
Forward Looking Statements
Statements in this press release that are not strictly historical in nature are forward-looking statements. These statements include, but are not limited to, references to expected operating results for the first quarter of 2003, improvement in manufacturing efficiency and reduced material costs, MOPA-based light sources, and to the book-to-bill being below one. These statements are only predictions based on current information and expectations, and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Actual events or results may differ materially from those projected in such statements due to various factors, including, but not limited to: the demand for semiconductors in general, and, in particular, for leading-edge devices with smaller geometries; the rate at which semiconductor manufacturers take delivery of photolithography tools from the company's customers; delays or cancellations by customers of their orders; new and enhanced product offerings by competitors; the timing of customer orders, shipments and acceptances; the ability of the company to meet its production and/or product development schedules; the ability of the company to secure adequate supplies of critical components for its advanced products; the ability of the company and its suppliers to improve manufacturing efficiencies; and the ability of the company to manage its expense levels and unanticipated expenses. For a discussion of these and other factors, which may cause our actual events or results to differ from those projected, please refer to the company's most recent annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, as well as other subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Cymer, Inc. is the world's leading supplier of excimer laser illumination sources, the essential light source for deep ultraviolet (DUV) photolithography systems. DUV lithography is a key enabling technology, which has allowed the semiconductor industry to meet the exacting specifications and manufacturing requirements for volume production of today's advanced semiconductor chips. Further information on Cymer may be obtained from the Company's SEC filings, the Internet at www.cymer.com or by contacting the company directly. |
