(Source: PRNewswire-FirstCall)
ANAHEIM, Calif., Aug. 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Multi-Fineline Electronix, Inc. , a leading global provider of high-quality, technologically advanced flexible printed circuit and value-added component assembly solutions to the electronics industry, today reported financial results for the third quarter ended June 30, 2009. Net sales in the third quarter of fiscal 2009 were $174.5 million, an increase of 4.1 percent from net sales of $167.6 million in the same period of the prior year. The increase in net sales was primarily due to higher sales of flex assemblies for smartphones and other portable consumer electronic devices that are experiencing strong demand in the marketplace.
Net income for the third quarter of fiscal 2009 was $11.7 million, or $0.46 per diluted share, compared to net income of $8.8 million, or $0.34 per diluted share, for the same period in fiscal 2008. Net income in the third quarter of fiscal 2009 was positively impacted by a one-time net tax credit of $2.4 million, representing $0.09 per diluted share.
"We executed well in the third quarter, ramping production volumes for major product launches while keeping our gross margin within our guidance range," said Reza Meshgin, Chief Executive Officer of MFLEX. "Our sales mix continues to be primarily comprised of flex assemblies for smartphones and portable consumer electronic devices that are experiencing strong end-user demand. We believe our ability to deliver flex assemblies for complex devices faster and better than our competitors continues to prove extremely valuable to our major customers, as product cycles shorten and time-to-market becomes more critical. Our unique ability to ramp production quickly has allowed us to win new programs for the most popular devices and actively participate in the growth of the smartphone market."
Financial Highlights
Gross margin during the third quarter of fiscal 2009 was 14.3 percent, compared to 13.8 percent for the same period in the prior year. The year-over-year increase in gross margin is primarily due to improved yields and labor productivity partially offset by the higher material content of current programs. Sequentially, gross margin improved from 14.2 percent in the second quarter of fiscal 2009 due to improved labor productivity partially offset by the higher material content of current programs.
Cash flow from operating activities for the third quarter of fiscal 2009 was $22.2 million.
At June 30, 2009, the Company had cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments of $127.3 million, an increase of $20.6 million compared to the balance at March 31, 2009.
Outlook
For the fourth quarter of fiscal 2009, the Company expects net sales to range between $190 and $205 million, and gross margin to range between 13.5% and 15.5% percent based on the projected product mix and ramp of new programs.
Commenting on the Company's business outlook, Mr. Meshgin said, "We expect the sales mix by customer in the fourth quarter to be relatively consistent with our third fiscal quarter. The expectation of a sequential quarter increase in net sales reflects the impact of anticipated higher unit volumes as our larger customers increase production ahead of the holiday season.
"We continue to be optimistic about our prospects for long-term growth. We believe we have good organic growth opportunities within our existing customer base. As some of our lower volume customers expand and update their portfolio of smartphone models, we believe we are well positioned to work with them as their needs for higher volume programs increase in the future. Also, with more OEMs entering the smartphone market, we believe the opportunities to expand our customer base are increasing. We continue to move forward as scheduled with our new manufacturing facility, MFC3, which we believe will provide the capacity and advanced technological capabilities necessary to accommodate a larger customer base in the future," said Mr. Meshgin.
Conference Call
MFLEX will host a conference call at 5:30 p.m. Eastern time (2:30 p.m. Pacific time) today to review its financial results for the third quarter of fiscal 2009. The dial-in number for the call in North America is 1-877-941-1468 and 1-480-629-9675 for international callers. The call also will be webcast live on the Internet and can be accessed by logging onto http://www.mflex.com/.
The webcast will be archived on the Company's website for at least 60 days following the call. An audio replay of the conference call will be available for seven days beginning at 8:30 p.m. Eastern time (5:30 p.m. Pacific time) today. The audio replay dial-in number for North America is 1-800-406-7325 and 1-303-590-3030 for international callers. The replay passcode is 4120532.
About MFLEX
MFLEX (http://www.mflex.com/) is a global provider of high-quality, technologically advanced flexible printed circuit and value-added component assembly solutions to the electronics industry. The Company is one of a limited number of manufacturers that provides a seamless, integrated end-to-end flexible printed circuit solution for customers, ranging from design and application engineering, prototyping and high-volume manufacturing to turnkey component assembly and testing. The Company targets its solutions within the electronics market and, in particular, focuses on applications where flexible printed circuits are the enabling technology in achieving a desired size, shape, weight or functionality of an electronic device.
