[In the event anyone still reads this thread] Cymer Updates Fourth Quarter 2003 Guidance
SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 9, 2003--Cymer, Inc. (Nasdaq: CYMI - News), the world's leading supplier of excimer light sources used in semiconductor manufacturing, today announced that the company expects both revenue and gross margin for the fourth quarter of 2003 to be at the high end of the guidance ranges provided in the company's October 21, 2003 press release and conference call. Other operating results are expected to be within the range of guidance.
ADVERTISEMENT
"In the fourth quarter to date, our business has developed much as we had anticipated," noted Bob Akins, Cymer chairman and chief executive officer. "Revenue is now expected to be at the upper end of our October 21 guidance of a 5 to 10 percent increase over third quarter 2003 revenue of $64,437,000, with a gross margin at the high end of the 30 to 35 percent range. We expect the foreign currency adjusted average selling price will be approximately $1 million and our fourth quarter book-to-bill ratio to be near one.
"We now expect that research and development spending will be closer to $13 million (our October 21 guidance range was $13 to $14.5 million), while selling, general and administrative expenses will be near $11 million (our guidance range was $10 to $11 million)," Akins added. "We also expect that Net Other Income and Expense will be a $300,000 expense for the quarter, excluding the net effects of foreign currency exchange gains or losses. We continue to estimate the annual effective tax benefit rate for 2003 to be approximately 60 percent, and still expect capital spending for the quarter to be between $5 and $10 million."
Turning to the outlook, Akins concluded, "While visibility remains limited, we're pleased that our fourth quarter book-to-bill ratio is expected to remain near parity, even with the expected increase in revenue. We believe this bodes well for the first half of 2004. We're also pleased that demand for the XLA 100, our dual chamber 4 kilohertz (kHz) argon fluoride (ArF) light source continues at a high level as this technology is being adopted rapidly in the industry." |
