WILLOW GROVE, Pa.--Chip-packaging systems supplier Kulicke & Soffa Industries Inc. today reported a 3.6% sequential increase in revenues to $106.9 million for the company's fiscal second quarter, ended March 31, compared to $103.2 million in the prior three-month period.
Moreover, the world's largest backend chip-assembly tool company predicted much strong growth in the current quarter as orders begin to strengthen after the severe downturn in semiconductor manufacturing. K&S estimated that its revenues would sequentially grow 22-to-31% to a range of $130-to-$140 million in the fiscal third quarter, which end June 30.
"The worst of this severe business cycle appears to be behind us, with recent business activity being markedly robust," said C. Scott Kulicke, chairman and chief executive officer of K&S. "Many of the one-time charges recorded this quarter ended March 31 were associated with our strategy to reduce our longer term cost structure which will position K&S for the upturn.
"Our China initiative is well underway and we began shipment of our newest automatic ball bonder, the Maxum, this month. Recent ordering patterns have been quite encouraging leading us to be more optimistic about a cyclical recovery," he added.
K&S posted a net loss of $43.6 million in the second fiscal quarter, including $29.5 million of one-time charges for inventory write-offs, asset impairment, discontinuance of a product, restructuring, and the relocation of manufacturing facilities to Asia. The Willow Grove-based company had a net loss of $17.5 million in the prior quarter. In the same quarter last year, K&S reported a net loss of $11.7 million on sales of $149.4 million.
Net bookings for the second fiscal quarter sequentially increased 27% to $126 million vs. $99 million in the prior quarter, which ended Dec. 31, said K&S. A year ago, K&S had net bookings of $63 million in the fiscal second quarter.
