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Cymer Announces Record Fourth Quarter and Year-end
Results for 1997
1997 Net Income up 300 Percent on 213 Percent Revenue Rise
SAN DIEGO, CALIF. - January 29, 1998 - Cymer Inc. <NASDAQ: CYMI>,
the world's leading supplier of excimer laser illumination sources essential for
deep ultraviolet (DUV) photolithography, today reported record fourth
quarter and year-end results for 1997.
Net income for the fourth quarter doubled to $7,173,000, or $0.24 per
share (diluted), on revenues of $59,076,000 compared to net income of
$3,547,000, or $0.12 per share (diluted), on revenues of $27,567,000 for
the fourth quarter of 1996.
For the year, net income increased 300 percent to $26,058,000, or $0.86
per share (diluted), compared to $6,510,000, or $0.29 per share (diluted),
reported for 1996. Revenues climbed 213 percent for the year, reaching
$203,647,000, compared to $64,995,000 recorded for 1996.
FY '97 Business Highlights
Commenting on the results, Cymer President and Chief Executive Officer
Robert Akins noted that the company's rapid growth was driven by the
semiconductor industry's adoption of DUV lithography to create faster,
smaller and higher performance integrated circuits (ICs). "As the leading
supplier of the enabling laser light systems essential to the progression of this
advanced technology, Cymer is uniquely positioned to capitalize on this
growth," said Akins.
Akins added that in addition to meeting or exceeding its 1997 financial
projections, Cymer is pleased to report that it met all of its major business
development objectives during the year. "Consistent with our plan, we
boosted manufacturing capacity by more than 100 percent to meet rising
demand. We also expanded our global infrastructure to support both
stepper manufacturers and chipmakers around the world. Finally, we made
excellent progress on our future technology roadmap. This included shipping
next-generation argon fluoride (ArF) laser systems and significant
development of our two new krypton fluoride (KrF) laser models slated for
introduction and shipment in 1998. In addition to raising the competitive bar,
these new systems will allow Cymer to offer a complete suite of advanced
laser models designed to further strengthen our technical and market
leadership position."
FY '97 Operating Highlights
Product revenues for 1997 reflected the sale of 460 lasers, compared to
145 in 1996. During the fourth quarter, this number totaled 133 laser
systems, 131 of which were for use in semiconductor photolithography
applications. Gross margins on product sales reached 40 percent during the
fourth quarter, contributing to gross margins of 38.5 percent for the year.
Operating income for the year was $34,444,000, up 337 percent from the
$7,884,000 reported in 1996. At year-end, backlog was $108,704,000.
Cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments totaled $132,290,000
with a quick ratio of 2.3:1 and a current ratio of 3.4:1. Working capital
totaled $202,539,000, while capital spending was approximately
$42,200,000 for the year and $11,610,000 for the fourth quarter.
Preparing for the Future
"Looking ahead, we remain extremely optimistic about the long-term
prospects for our market. According to independent market analyst firms,
the DUV lithography market is currently projected to grow at a compound
annual growth rate of 28 percent through the year 2000. We plan to
leverage the two new products slated for introduction and shipment in the
coming year to capitalize on this anticipated long-term growth and further
solidify our leadership position," said Akins.
Akins added, "Near term, however, the current Asian economic condition,
coupled with the ongoing DRAM supply/demand imbalance, is affecting
demand for the lithography equipment that relies on Cymer lasers. Many of
the world's leading lithography suppliers, all of which are Cymer customers,
are now indicating that their earlier forecasts are under revision due to these
changing market conditions. We are also seeing shifts in market share
among the suppliers themselves."
"As a result of these factors, and based on information currently available to
us, we anticipate a reduction in our revenues by 10 to 15 percent in the first
quarter of 1998 from fourth quarter levels. We will closely monitor the
situation going forward, consulting with customers on an ongoing basis to
ensure that their laser inventory levels are in line with the current demand
scenario," noted Akins. |
