The Gory Details on Tower Semiconductor's Double Fumble

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

Tower Semiconductor (NAS: TSEM) reported earnings on May 9. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
 For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), Tower Semiconductor missed estimates on revenues and missed estimates on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue dropped significantly. Non-GAAP earnings per share contracted significantly. GAAP loss per share increased.


Margins shrank across the board.

Revenue details
 Tower Semiconductor reported revenue of $112.6 million. The three analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ predicted revenue of $115.0 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 33% lower than the prior-year quarter's $168.0 million.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
 EPS came in at $0.13. The three earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ predicted $0.24 per share. Non-GAAP EPS of $0.13 for Q1 were 91% lower than the prior-year quarter's $1.50 per share. GAAP EPS were -$0.96 for Q1 compared to -$0.91 per share for the prior-year quarter.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
 For the quarter, gross margin was 2.3%, much worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was -15.1%, much worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -20.6%, 910 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. (Margins calculated in GAAP terms.)

Looking ahead
 Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $129.6 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.35.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $557.0 million. The average EPS estimate is $1.80.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a three-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 120 members out of 126 rating the stock outperform, and six members rating it underperform. Among 14 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 12 give Tower Semiconductor a green thumbs-up, and two give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Tower Semiconductor is buy, with an average price target of $10.33.

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The article The Gory Details on Tower Semiconductor's Double Fumble originally appeared on Fool.com.

Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor ofMotley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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