Signify published its fourth quarter and full-year 2019 financial results on January 31. The Dutch company reported full-year sales of EUR 6.2 billion (US$ 6.87 billion) which decreased by 4.6% YoY decrease but improved in profitability by 30bps to 10.4%. Its LED-based sales grew by 1.4%YoY, representing 78% of its sales. For 4Q19, Signify, registered sales for EUR 1.75 billion (US$ 1.94 billion) which improved by 1.4% compared to 4Q18. The adjusted gross margin increased by 30 bps to 37.8%, including a positive currency effect of 30 bps. Adjusted EBITA am...

Chip provider Epistar announced that it will double its capital expenditure to gear up for booming demands with increasing Mini LED applications in the coming years. The Taiwan-based LED chip maker sees rising demands in Mini LED products in the near future and plans to prepare its capacity in advance. As a result, Epistar said that it plans to increase its capital expenditure to above NTD 5 billion (US$ 163.83 billion), comparing to the regular expanses of NTD 2.5 billion (US$ 82 million) in the past. Currently the two major applications of Mini LED a...

Semiconductor equipment providers Veeco and K&S (Kulicke & Soffa) announced their financial results respectively. The two companies both reported business decline for the previous quarter. K&S revealed its fourth fiscal quarter of 2019 which ended September 28, 2019. The Company reported fourth quarter net revenue of US$139.8 million, net income of $6.4 million and non-GAAP net income of $9.3 million. The revenue and gross profit of K&S in fiscal 4Q19 have dropped by 24.3% and 23.8% compared to previous year. However, compared to previous quarter, bo...

Osram reported the financial results of its fiscal 2019 and 4Q19 yesterday in the same press release that backs up AMS’ takeover offer. The company reported a declined revenue in fiscal 2019 hit by the impacts of the weak Chinese automotive industry. For fiscal 4Q19, Osram registered revenues of EUR 924 million (US$ 1.02 billion), with an on-year decline of 5.3% and 9% on a comparable basis. Adjusted EBITDA came to EUR 86 million (US$ 94.72 million), down by 43.1%YoY. For fiscal 2019, the company posted revenues of EUR 3.464 billion (US$ 3.816...

Seoul Semiconductor announced its financial results of the third quarter of 2019 with revenues of KRW 283.4 billion (US$ 244.3 million), an operating profit of KRW 12 billion (US$ 10.34 million), and EBITDA of KRW 32.6 billion (US$ 28.10 million). The company said that it has achieved its guided range of KRW 280 billion to KRW 300 billion of revenues for the quarter. Despite the weak general lighting market, Seoul Semiconductor reported growing sales of WICOP products as the demand of larger and slimmer screen in the TV market increase. The sales...

German equipment solution provider AIXTRON announced the financial results for the third quarter and the first nine month of 2019. The company reported an on-year revenue increase of 2% to EUR 184.6 billion for 3Q19 and an operating result of EUR 24.5 million (US$ 27.16 million) that grew by 18%YoY. AIXTRON said that the order situation slightly recovered compared to the previous quarter. Sales were lower than in the previous quarters partly due to longer than expected processes to grant export licenses. Nevertheless, sales for the first nine months of 2019 in...

Signify published the financial results of 3Q19 last week with a 5% decrease in comparable sales growth while its LED-based business improved on-year by 2.6%. The company said that the “challenging macro environment with lower market activity in Europe, U.S., Greater China as well as a major impact of tightening liquidity in India,” was a major reason for the flat sales growth. The Dutch lighting company reported a revenue of EUR 1.53 billion (US$ 1.7 billion) in 3Q19, down by 3.3%YoY. Accumulated revenue for 2019 until the end of September came to E...

Cree posted financial results of its fourth quarter of fiscal 2019 and the whole fiscal year. For fiscal 4Q19 which ends on June 30, 2019, Cree registered a revenue of US$251.2 million for its fourth quarter of fiscal 2019, down by 5% YoY and 8% QoQ. GAAP net loss from continuing operations for the fourth quarter was US$34.6 million, or US$0.33 per diluted share. On a non-GAAP basis, net income from continuing operations for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2019 was US$11.5 million, or US$0.11 per diluted share, compared to non-GAAP net income from continuing o...

As the industry enters high season, LED chip maker Epistar reported revenue increase with rising demands for consumer products. Epistar registered a revenue of NT$1.396 billion (US$44.32 million) in July, which reached a peak in the past three month with an on-month increase of 14.24%. For 2Q19, the company posted revenues of NT$ 4.027 billion (US$1.279 billion), dropped by 23.95%YoY and 7.3%QoQ. The company has been suffered from operation loss in the past few quarters with market uncertainty caused by the on-going trade dispute between the U.S. and China. D...

US-based equipment provider VEECO reported its financial results of the second quarter of 2019. The company registered revenues of US$97.8 million, compared with US$157.8 million in 2Q18. VEECO said that its sales in the market of LED lighting, display and compound semiconductor were limited in the second quarter of 2019, taking 10% of the total revenue with US$ 9.69 million. However, VEECO underlined that it recently shipped an advanced MOCVD system to a leading compound semiconductor manufacturer who is piloting the system for ROY LEDs as well as ...

Seoul Semiconductor revealed its consolidated revenues of 2Q19 which came to KRW 283.3 billion (US$ 233.16 million), which has dropped by 2% YoY. The gross profit was KRW 69.3 billion (US$ 57.03 million) and operating profit was KRW 6.6 billion (US$ 5.43 million). The company said the business performance has achieved its guided range for revenues of the quarter. In comparison to other LED companies who have suffered from drastic decrease due to the weak market impacted by the US-China trade dispute, Seoul Semiconductor said it was able to achieve stable rev...

Osram announced the financial results of fiscal 3Q19 which marked “no signs of business revival” for the company. The quarterly revenue dropped by 14.9% YoY to EUR 850 million (US$ 948.28 million). Its EBITA fell by 66.2% YoY with EUR 42 million (US$ 46.86 million). EBITDA adjusted for special items was EUR 58 million (US$ 64.72 million), which was down by 58% compared to previous year’s figure; net income amounted to minus EUR 35 million (US$ 39 million). All three business segment of Osram, Opto Semiconductors, Automotive a...

Signify reported the financial results of the second quarter of 2019 and announced that it has agreed to buy a 51% share of Klite Lighting, a China-based LED luminaires manufacturer. Signify registered sales of EUR 1.477 billion (US$ 1.65 billion) with an on-year decrease of 6.1%. LED-based sales increased by 0.2%, accounting for 77% of total revenue. The adjusted gross margin declined by 20 bps to 37.7% due to lower sales volumes and price erosion, largely offset by ongoing procurement savings. Adjusted EBITA amounted to EUR 133 million (US$ 148.22 million) co...

Semiconductor equipment provider AIXTRON revealed its financial results for the first half and the second quarter of 2019. The 1H19 revenue of AIXTRON increased by 12% YoY to EUR 132 million (US$147.11 million), gross profit also grew by 4% YoY to EUR 52.4 million (US$ 58.4 million) despite that its order intake dropped by 36% YoY to EUR 98.3 million (US$109.22 million). AIXTRON noted that customer’s reluctance to invest in production expansion due to the ongoing US-China trade dispute has led to order intake decrease for the first ...

Osram announced that it Austrian company ams has approached with the interest of a public takeover of Osram with a value of EUR 38.50 (US$ 43.36) per share. However, right after Osram’s announcement, ams decided to withdraw the offer as the company did not see “sufficient basis” for continually talking with Osram. According to Osram, ams showed the interest of acquiring Osram by EUR 38.5 per share. The announcement noticed that to support the offer, ams will need a temporary bridge-loan facility of EUR 4.2 billion (US$ 4.73 billion) and a capital i...

Osram announced a confirmation of receiving a binding offer from Bain Capital and The Carlyle Group, the US-based private equity firms who have been in talk with the German company for a buyout since the end of 2018. According to Osram, the inventors have offered an amount of EUR 35 (US$39.5) per share for the buyout, which will be approximately 3.4 billion euro ($3.8 billion) for concluding the investor agreement and to make a public takeover offer. Osram said, “The responsible decision bodies will discuss and decide on this offer shortly.” Osram has b...

Osram moved a step forwards to its transformation to a high-tech company by selling its Siteco luminaires business to Stern Steward Capital, the investment arm of Stern Steward & Co. based in Munich. According to Osram, “Separation from Osram gives Siteco entrepreneurial freedom,” and Stern Stewart Capital will continue the current transformation approach. Despite that the financial details of the transaction were not revealed by both parties, Osram noted that its cost situation would also be improved with the elimination of previous Group structures. ...

After releasing few warnings in February and March, Osram finally unveiled the financial results of the second quarter of its fiscal 2019 ending March 31. The results went in line with what the company has expected with revenues decreased by 13.5% YoY to EUR862 million (US$965.14 million). The adjusted EBITDA fell by 56% YoY to EUR70 million (US$78.38 million) with an adjusted EBITDA margin dropped from 16.9% to 8.1%. The net loss came to EUR90 million (US$100.78 million). Continuous weak growth in China along with ongoing trade conflicts have led ...

Taiwan-based LED manufacturers Lextar and Epistar announced their financial reports for the first quarter of 2019. Both companies posted an on-year degrease for 1Q19; however, Lextar managed to stay profitable while Epistar had a loss in the past two quarters with impacts from the US-China dispute. Lextar registered revenues of NT$2.167 billion (US$70.13 million) for 1Q19 with an on-year decrease of 18.15% and an on-quarter decrease of 10%. Net profit came to NT$113 million (US$3.66 million). The company also posted a revenue of NT$815 million (US$26.38 millio...

Epiwafer producer IQE and optoelectronic components maker II-VI have report orders and growth driven by demands for sensing and communication technology. UK-based wafer product supplier IQE announced that has received the first mass production order for its recently constructed Newport Mega Foundry from its VCSEL customer. Optical components manufacturer II-VI reported its Fiscal 3Q19 results with strong demands for communications products. IQE reported that it has achieved full product qualification with its existing VCSEL client and is processing furt...

Cree announced financial results for its third quarter of fiscal 2019, ended March 31, 2019. Revenue from continuing operations for the third quarter of fiscal 2019 was US$274 million, which represents a 22% on-year increase. GAAP net loss from continuing operations for the third quarter of fiscal 2019 was US$22 million, or US$0.22 per diluted share. On a non-GAAP basis, net income from continuing operations for the third quarter of fiscal 2019 was US$20 million, compared to non-GAAP net income from continuing operations for the third quarter of fiscal 2018 of US$17...

AIXTRON, the Germany-based semiconductor equipment provider, announced its financial report for the first quarter of 2019 with an expected performance. The revenue of 1Q19 increased by 10% YoY to EUR 68.7 million (US$ 77 million). Although the gross margin decreased slightly to 39% YoY due to a change in the product mix, the gross profit of EUR 26.7 million (US$29.92 million) in the first quarter of 2019 was on a par with the previous year. According to AIXTRON, the first quarter of 2019 was mainly influenced by the expected reluctance of customers to inve...

Samsung and LG have both released their financial results for the first quarter of 2019 with profit loss in their display business resulting from the sluggish market. Samsung registered a revenue of KRW 6.12 trillion (US$ 5.24 billion) for its Display Panel Business in 1Q19 with an operating loss of KRW 0.56 trillion (US$ 479 million). The company said that the operating loss came from weaker profitability in both mobile and large displays. Mobile displays suffered slower demand and intensifying competition with LTPS LCDs. Large displays also took a hit from a ...

On its way of transforming to a high-tech photonic company, Osram has been challenged by the weakening global market. The German company adjusted its annual forecast for fiscal year 2019 which ends by September 30, 2019. Osram said the revenue of fiscal 2019 is expected to decline between 11 and 14 percent while the previous forecast was a revenue growth between 0 and 3 percent. The company also lowered is the range of its adjusted EBITDA margin to eight and ten percent from 12 to 14 percent. In addition, Osram expects a negative free cash flow between EUR 50 million t...

Cree is selling its lighting business to Ideal Industries, an Illinois-based electric power control and management company, to continue its strategy of becoming a more focused, powerhouse semiconductor company. Cree announced the execution of a definitive agreement to sell Cree Lighting, the lighting products business unit, which includes the LED lighting fixtures, lamps and corporate lighting solutions business for commercial, industrial and consumer applications. According to Cree, the deal is about US$310 million before tax. The company expects to receive an initial cash...

Taiwan-based LED company Lextar announced its 2018 financial reports with an annual revenue of NT$ 11.056 billion (US$ 357.58 million), down by 8.2% YoY. Its after tax profit came to NT$ 49 million (US$ 1.58 million). For the fourth quarter of 2018, the company registered a revenue of NT$2.4 billion, which dropped by 19.6% compared with 3Q18. In 2018, Lextar has slashed its lighting business to focus on high technology development which resulted in the decrease of annual revenue. The market uncertainty brought by the US-China trade war also impacted the busi...

Power management company Eaton announced its plan to spin off its lighting business to create an independent, publicly traded company by the end of 2019. The lighting business of Eaton covers a wide range of products and systems to maximize energy efficiency which records sales of US$ 1.7 billion in 2018. Eaton’s lighting business provides services to customers in commercial, industrial, residential and municipal market. The spin-off will include Eaton’s global airport lighting business and Mains lighting. According to Eaton, Goldman Sachs will be Eaton&rsq...

German equipment manufacturer AIXTRON posted its 2018 financial results. The company reported increased on-year revenue and gross margin due to continued demand for its MOCVD systems for lasers, red-orange-yellow (ROY) LEDs and specialty LEDs production. According to AIXTRON, its order intake in 2018 grew by 15% YoY to EUR 302.5 million (US$ 344.26 million), which led to a yearly revenue of EUR 268.8 million (US$ 306 million), up by 17% YoY. Adjusted for previous year's sales from discontinued operations, the sales increased by 40% compare...

Taiwanese LED companies announced their revenue of January 2019. Epistar and Lextar posted on-month revenue increase while Lite-On reported growth in LED products. Epistar registered a revenue of NT$ 1.27 billion (US$ 41.16 million) for January which increased by 6.56% MoM but dropped by 32.4% YoY. Impacted by the trade dispute and political uncertainty, business growth in the global LED market is not expected by the industry players. To cope with the sluggish market, Epistar has focused on Mini LED backlight products targeting high-end display applicatio...

U.S.-based instrument manufacturer Veeco announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal 2018. For 4Q18, the company registered a revenue of US$99 million, which dropped by 29.1% YoY. Veeco also reported a GAAP net loss of US$144.7 million, in comparison with US$8.5 loss in 4Q17. The non-GAAP loss was US$7.5 million. According to the company, the declined revenue and profit in the fourth quarter of 2018 was due to "Commoditization of the MOCVD market for LEDs in China.” In 2Q18, the revenue from China accounted for 45...