Elettronica
ASM INTERNATIONAL N.V. REPORTS FOURTH QUARTER 2014 RESULTS
Commenting on the results, Chuck del Prado, President and Chief Executive Officer of ASM International said:
"2014 was a strong year for ASM. We realized, excluding ASMPT, the highest sales level ever with a stable gross margin during the year of approximately 43%. (PE)ALD demand was strong and we extended our customer base. This creates a solid base and has led to the decision to propose in the coming AGM an increase of our dividend with 20% to EUR 0.60 per share. Q4 showed relatively stable sales as compared to Q3, while our order intake at EUR154 million was slightly above the range as indicated. This established a strong backlog of EUR176 million at the beginning of 2015."
For Q1 we expect sales between EUR150 and EUR160 million. For Q2 we expect a double digit sales increase as compared to Q1. For the second half of 2015 the current visibility is limited. The Q1 order intake is expected to be in the range of EUR145-165 million.
On October 29, 2014, ASMI announced a share buyback program, to purchase up to an amount of EUR100 million of its own shares within the 2014-2015 time frame. The repurchase program is part of ASMI's commitment to use excess cash for the benefit of its shareholders.
ASMI intends to use part of the shares for commitments under employee share-based compensation schemes.
The buyback program is executed by intermediaries through on-exchange purchases or through off-exchange trades. The program started on November 24, 2014, and will end on completion of the program but ultimately on November 20, 2015.
The maximum number of shares to be repurchased on any given day will not exceed 25% of the average daily trading volume on the regulated market on which purchases are made, calculated over the last 20 trading days before the date of repurchase. The program does not include the repurchase of ASMI's New York Registry Share program. On March 3, 2015 of the total program 47% has been repurchased of which 32% was repurchased in Q4 2014.
On April 9, 2015 ASMI will publish its 2014 Annual Report on Form 20-F and Statutory Annual Report. The reports will be published on our website at www.asm.com.
ASM International NV, headquartered in Almere, the Netherlands, its subsidiaries and participations design and manufacture equipment and materials used to produce semiconductor devices. ASM International, its subsidiaries and participations provide production solutions for wafer processing (Front-end segment) as well as for assembly & packaging and surface mount technology (Back-end segment) through facilities in the United States, Europe, Japan and Asia. ASM International's common stock trades on NASDAQ (symbol ASMI) and the Euronext Amsterdam Stock Exchange (symbol ASM). For more information, visit ASMI's website at www.asm.com .
ASM International will host an investor conference call and web cast on Thursday, March 5, 2015 at 15:00 Continental European Time (9:00 a.m. - US Eastern Time).
The teleconference dial-in numbers are as follows:
A simultaneous audio web cast will be accessible at www.asm.com .
Victor Bareño
T: +31 88 100 8500
E: victor.bareno@asm.com
Mary Jo Dieckhaus
T: +1 212 986 2900
E: maryjo.dieckhaus@asm.com
Ian Bickerton
T: +31 625 018 512
Copyright GlobeNewswire
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Regulatory News
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The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein.
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