SOUTH PORTLAND, Maine--Fairchild Semiconductor International Inc. today reported a 12.6% sequential drop in revenues to $325.4 million in the third quarter from $372.4 million in Q2, but the company also said its bookings in the just-ended period were up 23% sequentially.
Fairchild posted a net loss of $19.1 million, including charges for restructuring, compared to a net loss of $8.0 million in the second quarter. A year ago in the third quarter, Fairchild had revenues of $476.0 million and a net income of $69.7 million.
"While our revenues were down 32% from the third quarter of 2000, we outperformed the industry, which was down more than 45% in the same period," stated Kirk Pond, president, CEO and chairman of Fairchild. "We introduced more than 145 new products this quarter, raising our total through nine months to more than 385, well ahead of our 2000 run rate."
Pond said product bookings grew 23% in the third quarter over the prior period, pushing the company's book-to-bill ratio higher than 1:1. "Our turns business, which is comprised of orders for shipment within the same quarter, was unusually strong," Pond said. "We turned 28% of our third quarter bookings into revenue during this quarter.
"Visibility remains low, however. While our 13-week backlog grew 14% through the quarter, our 26-week backlog remained nearly unchanged," he added.
But Pond said he is optimistic about the growth prospects. "My experience through several semiconductor cycles has been that a combination of high turns, an improving book-to-bill ratio, low backlog visibility and aggressive pricing has always marked the beginning of the end of the downturn," he said.
