Fairchild Semiconductor reported results for the first quarter ended March 30, 2003. First quarter sales were $351.1 million, 4% higher than first quarter 2002 sales. A summary of the company’s positive highlights includes: total sales up year on year, new product sales increase 23% from first quarter 2002, sales from power analog and power discrete products increase 8% from first quarter 2002, and positive operating cash flow for 18th consecutive quarter.
Fairchild reported a net loss in the quarter of $17.6 million, or $0.15 per share, compared to net income of $2.7 million, or $0.03 per diluted share in the first quarter of 2002. During the quarter Fairchild had charges of $12.6 million associated with the previously announced closure of its 6-inch wafer fab in Mountaintop, PA, as well as other charges primarily associated with the company's Integrated Circuits Group restructuring.
On a pro forma basis, which excludes amortization of acquisition-related intangibles, restructuring and impairments and other items, Fairchild reported first quarter net income of $4.5 million, or $0.04 per diluted share, compared to a pro forma net loss of $1.1 million, or $0.01 per share in the first quarter of 2002.
"We executed well on the top line in what is historically a seasonally soft quarter in the industry, with sales near the high end of our previous guidance. Our revenue growth was driven by sales from products that have been in the market for less than three years. These new product sales grew 23% from first quarter of 2002, and topped $100 million for the second straight quarter," said Kirk Pond, president, CEO and chairman of the Board. "The power markets we serve continue to outgrow the overall semiconductor market, and we are improving our product offerings and manufacturing capabilities to more profitably serve them. According to recently released 2002 annual rankings from Gartner, Fairchild moved up in rank to the #6 analog supplier worldwide. This is especially gratifying as we grew our 2002 analog revenues faster than all five companies ranked higher than Fairchild--and we only entered the analog business six years ago.
"We remained focused on introducing new products, winning designs and reducing manufacturing costs. Our new Suzhou, China assembly and test factory is nearing completion of qualification runs, and we continue to expect reduced manufacturing assembly and test costs as production in that facility ramps over the next several quarters. Overall we are continuing to improve our operations to take advantage of the multiple power application markets we serve."
