FREMONT, Calif., Jan. 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ --Aehr Test Systems (Nasdaq: AEHR), a leading supplier of semiconductor test and burn-in equipment, today announced financial results for the second quarter of fiscal 2009 ended November 30, 2008.
Net sales were $9.2 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2009, compared with $9.7 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2008. Pre-tax income was $1.6 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2009, compared with $1.6 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2008. Aehr Test reported net income of $872,000, or $0.10 per diluted share, in the second quarter of fiscal 2009, compared with net income of $1.4 million, or $0.16 per diluted share, in the second quarter of fiscal 2008. Net income for the second quarter of fiscal 2009 reflects a significantly higher effective tax rate than the same period of the prior year, as the Company now expects to accrue tax expense at close to the statutory rates for the countries in which it generates income.
"Our net sales for the second quarter of fiscal 2009 came in lower than we originally expected, as we saw customers delay new orders or defer delivery on existing orders in light of the current economic slowdown," said Rhea Posedel, chairman and chief executive officer of Aehr Test Systems. "During this slowdown we are focusing on two strategies. First, we hope to maintain our strong financial position by maximizing our cash balance and keeping expenses low. In response to the challenging business conditions, we implemented a two-week shutdown of our facilities in December, and are actively exploring other measures to control or reduce our expenses until capital spending in the semiconductor equipment industry returns to more normal levels. Second, we are aggressively introducing new products, such as our ABTS system, which are targeting new test and burn-in market segments. We believe that our aggressive product development and marketing efforts during this time will position us well to win additional business with new and existing customers as the semiconductor industry begins to recover."
Net sales were $18.9 million in the first six months of fiscal 2009, an increase of 9% when compared with $17.3 million in the first six months of fiscal 2008. Net income for the six months ended November 30, 2008 was $1.7 million, or $0.20 per diluted share, compared with net income of $2.1 million, or $0.26 per diluted share, in the same period of the prior fiscal year.
At November 30, 2008, cash and cash equivalents and short-term investments were $13.7 million, an increase of $4.3 million from the balance at the end of the prior quarter. Aehr Test closed the second quarter of fiscal 2009 with no outstanding debt and shareholders' equity of $40.8 million, or $4.83 per share outstanding, at November 30, 2008.
Commenting on the outlook for Aehr Test Systems, Gary Larson, vice president and chief financial officer, said, "We are not expecting a meaningful improvement in this difficult operating environment until the second half of calendar 2009 at the earliest. Accordingly, due to the uncertainties in our market, we find it imprudent to provide guidance for the next several quarters."
Management Conference Call
Management of Aehr Test will host a conference call and webcast today, January 6, 2009 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern (2:00 p.m. Pacific) to discuss the Company's second quarter fiscal 2009 operating results. The conference call will be accessible live via the internet at www.aehr.com. Please go to the website at least 15 minutes before start time to register, download and install any necessary audio software. A replay of the webcast will be available at www.aehr.com for 90 days.
About Aehr Test Systems
Headquartered in Fremont, California, Aehr Test Systems is a leading worldwide provider of systems for burning-in and testing DRAMs, flash, and other memory and logic integrated circuits and has an installed base of more than 2,500 systems worldwide. Aehr Test has developed and introduced several innovative products, including the ABTS, FOX(TM), MTX and MAX systems and the DiePak(R) carrier. The ABTS is Aehr Test's newest system for packaged part test during burn-in for both low-power and high-power logic as well as all common types of memory devices. The FOX system is a full wafer contact test and burn-in system. The MTX system is a massively parallel test system designed to reduce the cost of memory testing by performing both test and burn-in on thousands of devices simultaneously. The MAX system can effectively burn-in and functionally test complex devices, such as digital signal processors, microprocessors, microcontrollers and systems-on-a-chip. The DiePak carrier is a reusable, temporary package that enables IC manufacturers to perform cost-effective final test and burn-in of bare die. For more information, please visit the Company's website at www.aehr.com.
Safe Harbor Statement
This release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties relating to projections regarding revenues and customer demand and acceptance of Aehr Test's products. Actual results may vary from projected results. These risks and uncertainties include without limitation, economic conditions in Asia and elsewhere, acceptance by customers of Aehr Test's technologies, acceptance by customers of the systems shipped upon receipt of a purchase order and the ability of new products to meet customer needs or perform as described, and the Company's development and manufacture of a commercially successful wafer-level test and burn-in system. See Aehr Test's recent 10-K and 10-Q reports and other reports from time to time filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for a more detailed description of the risks facing our business. The Company disclaims any obligation to update information contained in any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this press release.
[Financial Tables to Follow]
AEHR TEST SYSTEMS AND SUBSIDIARIES
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income
(in thousands, except per share data)
(Unaudited)
Three Months Ended Six Months Ended
November 30, November 30,
------------ ------------
2008 2007 2008 2007
---- ---- ---- ----
Net sales $9,242 $9,675 $18,932 $17,335
Cost of sales 4,650 4,791 9,422 8,270
----- ----- ----- -----
Gross profit 4,592 4,884 9,510 9,065
----- ----- ----- -----
Operating expenses:
Selling,
general and
administrative 1,830 1,847 3,915 3,663
Research and
development 1,577 1,445 3,055 3,093
----- ----- ----- -----
Total
operating
expenses 3,407 3,292 6,970 6,756
----- ----- ----- -----
Income from
Operations 1,185 1,592 2,540 2,309
Interest
income 47 83 110 158
Other income
(expense), net 384 (110) 377 (108)
--- ---- --- ----
Income before
income tax
expense 1,616 1,565 3,027 2,359
Income tax
expense 744 199 1,290 214
--- --- ----- ---
Net
income $872 $1,366 $1,737 $2,145
==== ====== ====== ======
Net income per share
Basic $0.10 $0.17 $0.21 $0.27
Diluted $0.10 $0.16 $0.20 $0.26
Shares used in per share calculations:
Basic 8,426 7,906 8,411 7,866
Diluted 8,447 8,418 8,600 8,359
AEHR TEST SYSTEMS AND SUBSIDIARIES
Reconciliation of GAAP and Non-GAAP Results
(in thousands, except per share data)
(Unaudited)
Reconciliation of non-GAAP Financial Measure - net income to net income
excluding stock compensation expense
Three Months Six Months
Ended Ended
November 30, November 30,
------------- ------------
2008 2007 2008 2007
---- ---- ---- ----
GAAP net income $872 $1,366 $1,737 $2,145
Stock
compensation
expense 330 203 616 396
Income tax effect
on stock
compensation
expense (132) (4) (255) (8)
---- -- ---- --
Non-GAAP net
income $1,070 $1,565 $2,098 $2,533
====== ====== ====== ======
GAAP net
income per
diluted share $0.10 $0.16 $0.20 $0.26
===== ===== ===== =====
Non-GAAP net
income per
diluted share $0.13 $0.19 $0.24 $0.30
===== ===== ===== =====
Shares used in
diluted shares
calculation 8,447 8,418 8,600 8,359
===== ===== ===== =====
Net income excluding stock compensation expense is a non-GAAP measure
and should not be considered a replacement for GAAP results.
Net income excluding stock compensation expense is a financial measure
the Company uses to evaluate the underlying results and operating
performance of the business. The difference between net income (the
most comparable GAAP measure) and net income excluding stock compensation
expense (the non-GAAP measure) reflects the impact of applying SFAS 123R
to the current period. The limitation of this measure is that it excludes
an item that impacts the Company's current period net income. This
limitation is best addressed by using this measure in combination with net
income (the most comparable GAAP measure) because net income excluding
stock compensation expense does not reflect the impact of adopting SFAS
123R and may be higher than net income (the most comparable GAAP measure).
AEHR TEST SYSTEMS AND SUBSIDIARIES
Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets
(in thousands, except per share data)
(Unaudited)
November 30, May 31,
2008 2008
ASSETS
Current assets:
Cash and cash
equivalents $11,727 $15,648
Short-term
investments 2,003 -
Accounts
receivable,
net 14,811 10,927
Inventories 10,517 10,209
Deferred
income taxes 2,046 3,043
Prepaid
expenses and
other 564 396
--- ---
Total current
assets 41,668 40,223
Property and
equipment, net 2,292 2,278
Goodwill 274 274
Deferred
income taxes 1,900 1,900
Other assets 528 524
--- ---
Total
assets $46,662 $45,199
======= =======
LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY
Current liabilities:
Current
portion of
long-term
debt $-- $--
Accounts
payable $2,224 $2,981
Accrued
expenses 2,821 3,694
Deferred
revenue 210 186
--- ---
Total current
liabilities 5,255 6,861
Income tax
payable 300 297
Deferred lease
commitment 315 269
--- ---
Total
liabilities 5,870 7,427
----- -----
Shareholders'
equity 40,792 37,772
------ ------
Total
liabilities
and
shareholders'
equity $46,662 $45,199
======= =======
Contact:
Tricia Ross
Financial Relations Board for Aehr Test Systems
Investor/Analyst Contact
(310) 403-7322
SOURCE Aehr Test Systems