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Nat'l Semi back to black
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September 9, 1999: 5:26 p.m. ET
Chip maker turns pre-tax profit in 1Q even without gain on sale
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - National Semiconductor Corp. posted an unexpectedly early move towards profitability after the market closed Thursday.
The Santa Clara, Calif., chip manufacturer, which recently exited the PC processor business, posted net income of $47.1 million, or 25 cents a share, in the first quarter of its fiscal 2000, which ended Aug. 29.
Much of that profit was due to the sale of its Fairchild Semiconductor stock, which resulted in a one-time gain of $48.4 million. But National Semiconductor (NSM) said it would have recorded a pretax profit of $1.2 million in the quarter without the sale, and a net loss of only $1.3 million for the quarter, or less than 1 cent a share fully diluted. The First Call estimate was for a 14 cent loss.
A year ago the company posted a $104.8 million net loss, or 63 cents a share.
"We are ahead of schedule on the return to profits plan we announced on May 5," said Brian L. Halla, chairman, president and chief executive. He said market conditions for the industry continue to improve and that the company had stronger than expected bookings through the summer quarter, particularly in mobile phones.
"We have entered the fall with much better backlog in place for delivery in the second quarter," Halla said. "We are looking for continued meaningful improvement in both revenue and profitability in the second quarter."
Net sales increased 2.5 percent to $481.8 million.
National Semiconductor shares closed Thursday at 32, up 1/8.
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