Contact Information: Contacts: Semitool, Inc. Larry Viano Chief Financial Officer 406.752.2107 Pfeiffer High Investor Relations, Inc. Geoff High 303.393.7044 www.pfeifferhigh.com
Semitool Provides Update on Anticipated Fourth Quarter 2007 Financial Results
Bookings at $60.2 Million, Up 20% Versus Third Fiscal Quarter
| Source: Semitool
KALISPELL, MT--(Marketwire - October 23, 2007) - Semitool, Inc. (NASDAQ : SMTL ), a leading
manufacturer of wafer processing equipment for the semiconductor industry,
today provided a preliminary overview of its anticipated financial results
for the fourth quarter ended September 30, 2007. Fourth quarter bookings
were $60.2 million, representing a 20% improvement over the prior period
and the strongest quarterly bookings performance of fiscal 2007.
The company expects to report fourth quarter revenue of $47 million, which
is within management's previous guidance range of $45 million to $48
million. Including the impact of an inventory write off of $3 million, or
approximately $0.06 per share, the company expects to report a fourth
quarter loss per share of between $0.05 and $0.07. Semitool said the write
off is related to recent product enhancements, which have led to inventory
obsolescence. Final fourth quarter financial results are subject to
completion of the company's annual audit, and will be reported after the
market closes on November 9, 2007.
Larry Murphy, president and chief operating officer, said, "Our strong
fourth quarter bookings are evidence of the success we have had expanding
our customer base and capturing new
process-of-record opportunities, particularly for emerging applications
such as single wafer
front-end-of-line cleaning and copper damascene for memory. As our
customers transition from technology to capacity buys, we have seen a
marked increase in sales of our
production-related tools. Based on recent customer feedback, we are
optimistic this trend will continue over the next fiscal year."
About Semitool, Inc.
Semitool designs, manufactures and supports highly engineered,
multi-chamber
single-wafer and batch wet chemical processing equipment used in the
fabrication of semiconductor devices. The company's primary suites of
equipment include electrochemical deposition systems for electroplating
copper, gold, solder and other metals; surface preparation systems for
cleaning, stripping and etching silicon wafers; and wafer transport
container cleaning systems. The company's equipment is used in
semiconductor fabrication front-end and back-end processes, including wafer
level packaging.
Headquartered in Kalispell, Montana, Semitool maintains sales and support
centers in the United States, Europe and Asia. The company's stock trades
on Nasdaq under the symbol SMTL. For more information, please visit the
company's website at www.semitool.com.
Semitool is a registered trademark of Semitool, Inc.
Safe Harbor Statement
This news release contains forward-looking statements, including (i)
preliminary estimates of revenue and earnings per share for the fourth
quarter of fiscal 2007 and (ii) statements related to the trend in
increased sales of production-related tools continuing over the next fiscal
year. The Company will release comprehensive consolidated financial
results in its fourth quarter news release and conference call expected to
occur on November 9, 2007. The forward-looking statements included in this
release are based on management's assumptions and estimates as of the date
hereof and are subject to risks and uncertainties that are discussed in our
filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including our
Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2006 and
subsequent filings. In addition, bookings are not necessarily an
indication of revenue in any future financial period. Many factors can
adversely affect future financial performance, including cancellations and
push-backs, unanticipated manufacturing and delivery considerations,
customers' on-site acceptance of our products, unanticipated costs, as well
as a number of other risk factors described in our Annual Report on Form
10-K. Our business in general is subject to risks that can cause actual
results to differ materially from those anticipated in our forward-looking
statements, including, without limitation, demand being adversely affected
by the cyclicality in the semiconductor industry, delays in acceptance and
payment for shipped tools, the company's ability to timely deliver and
support its products, technological changes that affect our ability to
compete, the risks associated with competing on a global basis and possible
volatility in key markets such as Asia. We assume no obligation to update
forward-looking statements that become untrue because of subsequent events.