Brooks Automation Reports Fiscal 2003 Fourth-Quarter and Full-Year Results
Thursday October 30, 8:04 am ET
CHELMSFORD, Mass., Oct. 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Brooks Automation, Inc. (Nasdaq: BRKS - News), which delivers total automation for semiconductor and other complex manufacturing industries, today announced results for the fiscal fourth quarter and fiscal year ended September 30, 2003. Results were generally in-line with expectations set in the preceding quarter.
Revenues for the fourth quarter were $81.7 million, a decline of 2.7 percent from the preceding quarter revenues of $84.0 million. Revenues for fiscal year 2003 were $343.6 million.
Bookings for the quarter were $83.1 million, a sequential increase of 13.2 percent over the preceding quarter bookings of $73.4 million. Bookings for fiscal year 2003 were $323.1 million.
The net loss for the fourth quarter on a GAAP ("Generally Accepted Accounting Principles") basis was $49.5 million, or $1.33 per share, compared to a net loss on the same basis of $36.4 million, or $0.99 per share in the immediately preceding quarter. The GAAP loss in the fourth quarter included a non-cash charge of $39.9 million for the impairment of goodwill upon completion of our annual impairment test as required by FAS 142, "Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets." The tangible book value of the company was not affected by the impairment charge. The net GAAP loss for fiscal 2003 was $185.8 million or $5.05 per share, compared to a loss of $720.0 million in fiscal 2002 or $27.90 per share on the same basis.
The net loss for the fourth quarter on a "pro forma" basis, defined as net loss before amortization of acquired intangible assets and other acquisition and disposition related charges, net of income taxes, was $7.2 million or $0.19 per share, compared to the preceding quarter pro forma loss of $10.9 million or $0.29 per share. It has been the practice of Brooks to report pro forma financial results since management believes that presenting the operating results before taking into account such charges provides useful information to aid in understanding ongoing, recurring operations. As in previous earnings reports, a reconciliation of GAAP to pro forma losses for the quarter and the year is included in the attached exhibits.
The net cash balance at the end of the fourth quarter was $198.6 million, including cash, cash equivalents, short-term and long-term marketable securities.
Robert J. Therrien, chairman and chief executive officer of Brooks Automation, said: "The just-concluded fourth quarter was positive for Brooks in a number of areas as we met or exceeded many of our short-term objectives for the quarter. The company's bookings came off the June bottom and grew 13.2 percent quarter-over-quarter while revenues decreased slightly from the preceding quarter, both in accordance with our previous guidance. We continued to keep a tight rein on costs, reducing our quarterly pro forma operating expenses from $37.0 million in the June quarter to $33.1 million in the September quarter. On a broader scale, we are encouraged by signs that the semiconductor industry is gathering momentum for a recovery cycle in the next 6 to 12 months. The rapid adoption of new technologies such as the transition to 300mm wafers, the shrinking size of the transistors, implementation of new materials and fab capacity utilization levels further support our view that semiconductor capital expenditures are likely to increase in 2004. As the semiconductor industry's largest independent automation supplier, Brooks is well-positioned to participate significantly in the next investment cycle."
Mr. Therrien reviewed some of the highlights of the fourth quarter and fiscal year 2003: "Operationally, we have stayed focused on consolidating our factories into three main sites and strengthening our manufacturing capabilities, which we believe will result in a significant competitive advantage when the industry ramps up. Our operating expense for the quarter has been reduced by approximately $25 million compared to September 2002, primarily through our consolidation efforts including a net reduction in workforce from approximately 3,000 to 1,878 employees. We believe we have improved our market position in our core OEM business during this downturn, and stand to benefit from the continued outsourcing trend of top tier customers, who look to work with Brooks to closely couple our design and manufacturing capability to their benefit. This enables our OEM customers to focus on their value proposition -- process development, process integration and customer services. On the fab end user side of the business, we continue to do business with nearly every 300mm fab with our broad offering of factory hardware and software across a diverse customer base ranging from DRAM to logic semiconductor manufacturers, as well as flat panel display customers and other industries."
Mr. Therrien commented on Brooks' business environment. "The timing of several large projects that impact our revenues are scheduled to close at the end of the December quarter and may push into the March quarter. As a result, we are guiding revenues for the December quarter to be flat sequentially from the September quarter, while bookings are expected to increase approximately 10 percent quarter-over-quarter. The GAAP loss for the December quarter is estimated to be in the range of $0.28 to $0.35 per share and pro forma loss to be essentially unchanged from the September quarter at the current revenue level. We remain focused in the near term on improving the operating margins of the company and managing our cash, and as we head into a market upturn in the next few quarters, we hope to gain significant operating leverage and further solidify our market share while delivering more value to our customers and shareholders."
Q4 Fiscal 2003 Highlights
-- Announced the new OneFab AMHS 300mm solution at Semicon West in July
and subsequently introduced the system to customers in the United
States, Asia and Europe.
-- Received large order for factory automation hardware from a new 300mm
DRAM fab in Taiwan.
-- Shipped the first EFEM to a large OEM as part of their new outsourced
automation systems model.
-- Shipped the first HX 7000 flat panel display cluster tool platform to a
Korean customer.
-- Captured 12 new design-in wins during the quarter.
-- Shipped the first new GXT 9000 300mm double cluster tool to an OEM
customer.
-- Shipped the 10,000th Brooks 300mm loadport during the quarter.
-- Received order for 200mm SMIF expansion from a fab in southeast Asia.
-- Received add-on AMHS expansion orders from 2 customers.
-- Received orders from 2 different customers, one in the US and one in
Japan, for multiple site licenses of MES software as corporate-wide
standards.
-- Received orders for RTD software licenses for multiple sites from an
European semiconductor manufacturer.
-- Elected Edward C. Grady, president and chief operating officer of
Brooks Automation, to Brooks' Board of Directors, on September 18,
2003.
-- Elected A. Clinton Allen of Needham, Massachusetts and John K.
McGillicuddy of Wayland, Massachusetts to the Board of Directors of
Brooks effective October 1, 2003.
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