EXTON, Penn., Feb. 22, 2000 (PRIMEZONE) -- CFM Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq:CFMT) today reported financial results for the first quarter of fiscal 2000 ended January 31, 2000.
Net sales for the first quarter increased 39% over fourth quarter net sales to $12.7 million from $9.2 million and increased 110% from $6.1 million in the prior year period. The Company reported a net loss for the first quarter of $2.3 million or ($0.29) per diluted share compared to a net loss of $2.5 million or $(0.32) per diluted share in the fourth quarter of fiscal 1999 and a net loss of $2.9 million, or $ (0.37) per diluted share, in the prior year period.
Gross margin for the first quarter of fiscal 2000 was 38.8%, a slight increase compared to 36.4% in the previous quarter but substantially up from 20.1% in the prior year period.
"The semiconductor industry recovery continues to gain momentum and CFM's outlook and visibility are now stronger than they have been since before the downturn," said Roger Carolin, CFM's President and Chief Executive Officer. "Increased capacity utilization and a robust outlook for device sales are driving customers to accelerate spending plans for new capacity. It now appears that equipment spending in 2000 will significantly exceed previous industry estimates. Our investments over the past several quarters in new products and a broader suite of applications for our existing products should allow us to participate aggressively in this capacity expansion phase. In addition, we note that a number of customers are firming up their investment plans for 300mm, and we believe that we are also well positioned to compete for these opportunities."
CFM Technologies, Inc.
Research, development and engineering expenses in the fiscal 2000 first quarter were $2.5 million, compared to $2.4 million in the previous quarter and $2.5 million in the prior year period. The Company anticipates that RD&E spending in the coming quarters will continue at these levels.
Selling, general and administrative expenses for the first quarter of 2000 were $6.2 million, compared to $5.1 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 1999 and $3.5 million in the prior year period. Patent litigation costs for the quarter exceeded $1.5 million and are anticipated to remain at that level through the third fiscal quarter. Sales commissions to sales agents in Asia and investments in service and support infrastructure also increased during the first quarter. Customer orders for the first quarter totaled $14.3 million, an increase of 52% over the fourth quarter of fiscal 1999, and backlog rose to $12.2 million. Orders from Asia accounted for 72% of total orders, with the balance coming from the U.S. (25%) and Europe (3%). It has been the experience of the Company that neither the backlog nor the pattern of receipt of orders is necessarily indicative of future orders or revenues.
As previously announced, the Board of Directors approved a program to repurchase up to 750,000 shares of common stock. As of January 31, 2000, the Company had repurchased 223,100 shares and had 7,834,417 common shares outstanding, net of the repurchased shares.
The discussion above regarding the Company's expectation of future sales, gross margins, research, development and engineering expenses, patent litigation expenses, backlog and order activity includes certain forward-looking statements on these subjects. As such, actual results may vary materially from such expectations. Factors which could cause actual results to differ from expectations include variations in the level of orders, which can be affected by general economic conditions including the current economic and financial conditions in Asia; the timing of the recovery in the semiconductor industry, difficulties or delays in product functionality or performance, the timing of future product releases, failure to respond adequately to either changes in technology or customer preferences, risks of nonpayment of accounts receivable, changes in budgeted costs or failure to realize a successful outcome to pending patent litigation.
CFM Technologies, Inc. is a leading manufacturer of advanced cleaning equipment for the semiconductor industry. Its systems provide superior contamination control and processing capabilities using a totally enclosed processing chamber. Watermarks and other drying defects are eliminated through CFM's Direct-Displace(tm) IPA vapor drying technology. CFM historically has invested in technical innovations to lower cost of ownership.
CFM TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
(In thousands, except per share data)
(unaudited)
Three Months Ended
January 31,
2000 1999
Net sales $ 12,706 $ 6,052
Cost of sales 7,780 4,837
Gross profit 4,926 1,215
Operating expenses:
Research, development and
engineering 2,497 2,471
Selling, general and
administrative 6,169 3,552
Total operating expenses 8,666 6,023
Operating loss (3,740) (4,808)
Interest expense (income), net (266) (426)
Loss before income taxes (3,474) (4,382)
Income tax benefit (1,181) (1,490)
Net loss $ (2,293) $ (2,892)
Net loss per common share:
Basic $ (0.29) $ ( 0.37)
Diluted $ (0.29) $ (0.37)
Shares used in computing net
loss per common share:
Basic 7,816 7,860
Diluted 7,816 7,860
CFM TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(In thousands)
(unaudited)
January 31, October 31,
2000 1999
ASSETS
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents $ 6,645 $ 13,967
Short-term investments 10,635 10,249
Accounts receivable 17,246 14,826
Inventories 18,766 17,039
Prepaid expenses and other 919 796
Deferred income taxes 2,240 1,958
Total current assets 56,451 58,835
Net property, plant and equipment 13,264 13,537
Other assets 10,510 9,714
Total assets $ 80,225 $ 82,086
LIABILITIES AND
SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY
Current liabilities:
Current portion of
long-term debt 586 $ 589
Accounts payable 3,842 3,930
Accrued expenses 9,749 9,246
Total current liabilities 14,177 13,765
Long-term debt 1,498 1,628
Total liabilities 15,675 15,393
Shareholders' equity:
Common stock 81,771 81,495
Treasury stock, at cost (1,858) (1,858)
Deferred compensation (149) (23)
Retained deficit (15,214) (12,921)
Total shareholders' equity 64,550 66,693
$ 80,225 $ 82,086
CONTACT: CFM Technologies, Inc.
Jeff Randall
Chief Financial Officer
610-280-8509
or
Morgen-Walke Associates
Michele Katz/Michael Polyviou
Elric Martinez
Press: Rob Ingram
212-850-5600