From Briefing.com: 4:47PM Rubicon Tech expects Q1 revs of $10 mln vs $10.26 mln consensus, EPS of ($0.15) vs ($0.10) consensus, guided for Q2 (RBCN) 10.31 +0.86 : Co expects revenue for the first quarter of approx $10 million vs $10.26 mln consensus, in line with its guidance of $8 to $12 million. Rubicon recorded expense of $1.8 million in the quarter associated with scrap and re-work of wafers. The company signed a new contract with its major six-inch wafer customer in February of this year, and this expense is associated with bringing wafers produced prior to the signing of the new contract to the revised specifications defined in the new agreement. Other factors impacting the quarter were a product mix reflecting a greater than expected proportion of lower margin two- through four-inch cores and an additional tax benefit. The company expects to report a loss of approximately $0.15 per share for the quarter, vs ($0.10) consensus, and compared with earlier guidance of a loss between $0.10 and $0.14 per share. "We anticipated that we would need to rework some of the wafers already produced to meet the new specifications. During the re-work process, some wafers became dimensionally non-compliant and needed to be scrapped... The scrap charge is related only to wafers produced prior to the signing of the new agreement. This is not a problem with new production as these new specifications are well within our standard process capabilities." Regarding the second quarter outlook, the co said, "We are seeing the market begin to rebound in the second quarter with an increase in orders for two- through four-inch sapphire cores and an increase in six-inch wafer sales for both the LED and SoS markets. However, pricing remains low. The co expects revenue in the second quarter of $15 to $18 mln vs $15.36 mln consensus and a loss per share of $0.10 to $0.14 vs ($0.01) consensus
4:41PM Fairchild Semi accuses Power Integrations' LED Power Conversion Products in new patent lawsuit (FCS) 14.37 +0.20 : Co announced it has filed new patent infringement claims against Power Integrations' LinkSwitch-PH LED power conversion products. The new lawsuit follows last week's jury verdict finding that Power Integrations' LinkSwitch-II and LinkSwitch-CV products infringe Fairchild patent claims. Fairchild is asserting three new patents that extend the company's primary side regulation technology, already found infringed by Power Integrations, to LED power conversion technology.
4:21PM TTM Tech misses by $0.07, misses on revs; guides Q2 EPS in-line, revs in-line (TTMI) : Reports Q1 (Mar) earnings of $0.15 per share, $0.07 worse than the Capital IQ Consensus Estimate of $0.22; revenues fell 12.3% year/year to $300.5 mln vs the $320.66 mln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for Q2, sees EPS of $0.18-0.27 vs. $0.27 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate; sees Q2 revs of $320-340 mln vs. $338.95 mln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate.
4:18PM Flextronics beats by $0.06, reports revs in-line; guides Q1 EPS in-line, revs below consensus (FLEX) 6.77 +0.09 : Reports Q4 (Mar) earnings of $0.28 per share, $0.06 better than the Capital IQ Consensus Estimate of $0.22; revenues fell 6.0% year/year to $6.38 bln vs the $6.44 bln consensus. Co issues mixed guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $0.20-0.24 vs. $0.24 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate; sees Q1 revs of $5.9-6.3 bln vs. $6.74 bln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate.
4:09PM FormFactor beats by $0.18, beats on revs (FORM) 5.69 +0.09 : Reports Q1 (Mar) loss of $0.29 per share, $0.18 better than the Capital IQ Consensus Estimate of ($0.47); revenues fell 13.9% year/year to $34.8 mln vs the $32.15 mln consensus. Co states, "Q1 started very slowly but recovered later in the quarter as DRAM manufacturers increased their probe card purchases. Overall demand for our products increased in Q1 and we continued to focus on new product technologies and improving operational performance to deliver better long-term financial results."
4:08PM Broadcom beats by $0.10, beats on revs (BRCM) 36.71 +0.11 : Reports Q1 (Mar) earnings of $0.65 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.10 better than the Capital IQ Consensus Estimate of $0.55; revenues rose 0.6% year/year to $1.83 bln vs the $1.78 bln consensus.
4:01PM Anadigics misses by $0.03, reports revs in-line (ANAD) 2.18 -0.03 : Reports Q1 (Mar) loss of $0.21 per share, $0.03 worse than the Capital IQ Consensus Estimate of ($0.18); revenues fell 34.7% year/year to $28.4 mln vs the $28.53 mln consensus. As of March 31, 2012, cash, cash equivalents and short and long-term marketable securities totaled $84.0 million.
4:30 pm : A broad-based bid on the back of some better-than-expected data drove the S&P 500 up more than 1% so that it traded near the multi-year highs set about a month ago, but a gradual decline in afternoon action left the broad market measure hand over about half of its gain.
Early trade was relatively flat as limited trade abroad, stemming from holiday observance, left participants with few directional cues. China reported a Manufacturing PMI reading of 53.3, which is its best reading in about one year, but still less than what had been widely expected. The United Kingdom underwhelmed with its PMI reading of 50.5. Sentiment swung positive almost immediately with the release of the ISM Manufacturing Index, which made surprise improvement to 54.8 from 53.4 in the prior month. News that construction spending increased by 0.1% in March when a 0.5% increase had been broadly anticipated was given little attention.
Financials and Energy helped lead the market's climb. Each sector had ascended to a gain of about 2% before support waned into the close. They still scored gains in excess of 1%, though. Marsh McLennan (MMC 34.35, +0.90) provided a pleasing quarterly report that spurred its shares higher, helping to lead the broader Financial sector. Diversified financial services plays also contributed, while Genworth Financial (GNW 6.15, +0.14) outperformed ahead of its quarterly report. Despite an earnings miss, Chesapeake Energy (CHK 19.60, +1.16) was a top performer among Energy issues, whereas Marathon Petroleum (MPC 41.21, -0.40) slid after it reported an upside earnings surprise. Valero (VLO 24.84, +0.14) also bested expectations for the bottom line, but its shares surrendered a chunk of gains. BP Plc (BP 42.70, -0.71) was pressured for the entire session following its quarterly report, but Anadarko Petroleum (APC 75.06, +1.85) staged a strong gain following its release. Amid the action crude oil climbed more than 1% to clear $106 per barrel for the first time in more than one month.
Although its earnings proved greater than what Wall Street had anticipated, Pfizer (PFE 22.78, -0.12) returned to the red after it had overcome an early loss. Archer Daniels Midland (ADM 33.02, +2.19) was one of the session's top performers. The stock set a multi-month high following a bottom line beat that came despite a relatively light revenue figure. Tech was one of the weaker performing sectors, settling with a gain of only 0.2%.
Heavyweights like Microsoft (MSFT 32.01, -0.01), Apple (AAPL 582.13, -1.85), Cisco (CSCO 19.98, -0.18), and Google (GOOG 604.43, -0.42) hampered the sector, and also dragged on the Nasdaq, which trailed its counterparts into the close and barely eked out a gain.
Tomorrow's calendar features the ADP Employment Report at 8:15 AM ET. It is expected to provide a glimpse into the monthly payrolls report scheduled for release on Friday. Monthly factory orders figures are due tomorrow at 10:00 AM ET. Weekly crude oil inventory data will be posted at 10:30 AM ET.
Advancing Sectors: Energy +1.4%, Financials +1.1%, Materials +0.5%, Telecom +0.5%, Utilities +0.5%, Consumer Discretionary +0.5%, Health Care +0.3%, Industrials +0.3%, Consumer Staples +0.2%, Tech +0.2%
Declining Sectors: NoneDJ30 +65.69 NASDAQ +4.08 NQ100 +0.1% R2K -0.1% SP400 +0.4% SP500 +7.91 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1184/1.84 bln/1333 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1960/766 mln/1059
TriQuint Semiconductor (TQNT) has been selected by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency to lead a $12.3 mln development program focused on ultra-fast gallium nitride switch technology for the Microscale Power Conversion program.
Veeco Instruments (VECO $33.90 +3.71) reported first quarter earnings of $0.49 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.28 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of $0.21, while revenues fell 45.1% year/year to $139.9 million versus the $126.1 mln consensus. For the second quarter, the company sees EPS of $0.29-0.48, excluding non-recurring items, versus the $0.24 consensus and revenues of $120-145 million versus the $128.0 million consensus. The company issued in-line guidance for fiscal year 2012 with revenues of $500-600 million versus the $538.4 million consensus. "While MOCVD bookings grew modestly in the first quarter, we have not yet seen a clear inflection in customer buying patterns. LED customers remain cautious about capacity investment plans and it is still unclear when the MOCVD market will recover. Some positive signs are emerging, including increasing tool utilization rates in Korea, Taiwan and China, and a pick-up in customer quoting activity. Overall, we are seeing positive trends in LED lighting -- lower prices, more LED lamp products, and heightened consumer awareness. LED manufacturers are focused on how to position their businesses for growth as LEDs become the dominant lighting technology. Despite the business decline in 2012, we firmly believe that the future MOCVD market opportunity will be larger than what we have experienced so far."
09:36 am Veeco Instruments shares rise over 12% following sizeable beat on earnings
Veeco Instruments (VECO $34.20 +4.01) reported first quarter earnings of $0.49 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.28 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of $0.21, while revenues fell 45.1% year/year to $139.9 million versus the $126.1 mln consensus. For the second quarter, the company sees EPS of $0.29-0.48, excluding non-recurring items, versus the $0.24 consensus and revenues of $120-145 million versus the $128.0 million consensus.
The company issued in-line guidance for fiscal year 2012 with revenues of $500-600 million versus the $538.4 million consensus. "While MOCVD bookings grew modestly in the first quarter, we have not yet seen a clear inflection in customer buying patterns. LED customers remain cautious about capacity investment plans and it is still unclear when the MOCVD market will recover. Some positive signs are emerging, including increasing tool utilization rates in Korea, Taiwan and China, and a pick-up in customer quoting activity. Overall, we are seeing positive trends in LED lighting -- lower prices, more LED lamp products, and heightened consumer awareness. LED manufacturers are focused on how to position their businesses for growth as LEDs become the dominant lighting technology. Despite the business decline in 2012, we firmly believe that the future MOCVD market opportunity will be larger than what we have experienced so far."
Integrated Device (IDTI $6.12 -0.65) reported fourth quarter earnings of $0.05 per share, $0.02 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of $0.03, while revenues fell 17.7% year/year to $119.1 million versus the $117.3 million consensus. Co states, "Our Q4 results reflect improving trends in our communications and enterprise computing businesses, and underscore increased traction of our new product categories as revenue from new products increased to 13 percent from 10 percent in the prior quarter. In addition, gross margins were 300 basis points better than expected, highlighting improved product mix and lower inventory reserves." The company also announced that it acquired Fox Electronics, a leading global supplier of frequency control products, in an all-cash transaction for approximately $30 million, of which $26 million was paid at closing. Fox Electronics' revenue was approximately $23 million in calendar year 2011, and the company is profitable. |
