Amkor Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMKR) reported first-quarter 2019 adjusted loss of 4 cents per share, narrower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 15 cents.
Revenues of $895 million beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $880 million and were within the company’s guided range of $840-$920 million. However, revenues decreased 17% sequentially and 12.7% year over year.
The sequential decline in revenues was due to smartphone inventory correction and slowdown in the general market.
The company has been making efforts to channelize its resources in important growth areas like MEMS and sensors business, which focus on mobile and automotive applications. In this regard, Amkor recently added a third MEMS and sensor production line in Korea to attract more business.
The company remains optimistic about automotive business growth. Per market forecast, the automotive market will grow in high single digits in the coming years. The growth is expected to be driven by increasing electronic content. Given attractive value proposition for automotive customers, Amkor is poised to benefit going ahead.
Coming to share price performance, the stock has gained 6.4% in the past year compared with its industry’s growth of 30%.
Revenues by Product Lines
The revenue mix in terms of product linesis discussed below.
Advanced Products, which include flip chip scale packages, wafer-level chip scale packages and flip chip ball grid array packages, accounted for approximately 47% of first-quarter revenues. Revenues decreased 25.2% sequentially and 11.3% year over year.
Mainstream Products, whichinclude lead frame packages, substrate-based wire bond packages and MEMS packages, accounted for the remaining 53% of first-quarter revenues. Revenues decreased 8.5% sequentially and 13.8% year over year.
Margins
Per the press release, gross margin of 13.5% was at the high end of the guided range, primarily due to higher sales and favorable product mix. However, gross margins were down 340 basis points (bps) sequentially and 190 bps from the year-ago quarter.
Operating expenses of $107.3 million decreased 11.8% year over year due to decreased employee compensation costs and reduced discretionary spending.
As a percentage of sales, both selling, general & administrative, as well as research & development expenses remained flat with the year-ago quarter.
As a result, operating margin was 1.5%, down 200 bps from the prior-year quarter.
Balance Sheet & Cash Flow
Cash flow from operations was $52.1 million compared with negative $147.6 million in the fourth quarter.
Total cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash were $1.06 billion, up from $684.2 million in fourth-quarter 2018. Net debt at the end of the first quarter was $800 million.
Guidance
For the first quarter, Amkor expects revenues in the range of $850-$930 million. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenues is pegged at $879.9 million. Gross margin is expected within 9-14%. Earnings per share are expected in the range of (25)-(4) cents on a GAAP basis.
Amkor Technology, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Amkor Technology, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise | Amkor Technology, Inc. Quote
Zacks Rank and Stocks to Consider
Currently, Amkor carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Some better-ranked stocks in the broader technology sector include Facebook, Inc. (NASDAQ:FB) , Shopify Inc. (NYSE:SHOP) and AXT, Inc. (NASDAQ:AXTI) , each carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Long-term earnings growth for Facebook, Shopify and AXT is currently projected at 20.2%, 23.7% and 15%, respectively.
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