Cymer sees softness continuing in Q2
A service of Semiconductor Business News, CMP Media Inc.
Story posted at 8:30 a.m. EDT/5:30 a.m. PDT, 4/24/98
SAN DIEGO--Excimer laser supplier Cymer Inc. has
reported revenue increased 34.6% in the first quarter but
its net income dropped 38.6% compared to the same
period last year. A decrease in chip industry capital
spending caused Cymer's revenue to slip 15.9% and its
income to decline 62.5% compared to results form the
fourth quarter 1997.
"The ongoing DRAM supply imbalance coupled with the
economic conditions in Japan and Asia, affected overall
demand, holding down chip makers' spending for capital
equipment," said Robert Akins, president and chief
executive officer of Cymer. "This resulted in a 15%
decline in product sales on a sequential quarterly basis.
This decline and the related reduced capacity utilization
produced gross margins of 38.3% for the quarter versus
40% for the fourth quarter of 1997.
"In addition, expenses for sales and marketing and
research and development increased 6% and 3%
respectively over the prior quarter, due in part to the new
product introduction of the ELS-5010 Krypton Fluoride
(KrF) excimer laser," he added.
For the quarter ended March 31, Cymer reported revenue
of $49.7 million vs. $37.0 million in the first quarter last
year and $59.1 million in the fourth quarter last year. Its
net income totaled $2.7 million in the first quarter this year
compared to $4.4 million in the same period 1997 and $7.2
million in the fourth quarter.
Cymer remains optimistic that the semiconductor
equipment market will rebound before too long and it is
pushing ahead with advanced new laser systems for
next-generation chip production, Akins said. However,
He said the company expects its second-quarter revenues
to be flat with the first quarter and earnings to be lower in
the next three months as a result of soft industry
conditions.
"We believe the 5010 together with our next-generation
KrF laser, the 'Orion,' which we plan to ship in the third
quarter, raises the competitive bar and further solidifies
our market leadership position," he said. "Pushing KrF
laser sources to their limits is especially critical to
enabling higher resolution as evidenced by the
announcement last week by Sematech, Photronics,
National Semiconductor and MicroUnity, which used a
Cymer KrF laser in their achievement of 0.10-micron
critical dimensions." (See SBN's report on the Sematech
reticle research project from April 15 news coverage.)
techweb.cmp.com |
