Lam Research Corporation Reports Financial Results for the Quarter Ended September 25, 2016

FREMONT, Calif., Oct. 19, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Lam Research Corp. (Nasdaq:LRCX) today announced financial results for the quarter ended September 25, 2016 (the "September 2016 quarter").

Highlights for the September 2016 quarter were as follows:

• Shipments of $1,708 million and revenue of $1,632 million.
  
• GAAP gross margin of 43.9%, GAAP operating margin of 19.4%, and GAAP diluted EPS of $1.47.
  
• Non-GAAP gross margin of 45.2%, non-GAAP operating margin of 22.4%, and non-GAAP diluted EPS of $1.81.

U.S. GAAP Financial Results

For the September 2016 quarter, revenue was $1,632 million, gross margin was $716 million, or 43.9% of revenue, operating expenses were $400 million, operating margin was 19.4% of revenue, and net income was $264 million, or $1.47 per diluted share on a GAAP basis. This compares to revenue of $1,546 million, gross margin of $699 million, or 45.2% of revenue, operating expenses of $390 million, operating margin of 20.0% of revenue, and net income of $259 million, or $1.46 per diluted share, for the quarter ended June 26, 2016 (the “June 2016 quarter”).

Non-GAAP Financial Results

For the September 2016 quarter, non-GAAP gross margin was $737 million or 45.2% of revenue, non-GAAP operating expenses were $372 million, non-GAAP operating margin was 22.4% of revenue, and non-GAAP net income was $322 million, or $1.81 per diluted share. This compares to non-GAAP gross margin of $720 million or 46.6% of revenue, non-GAAP operating expenses of $361 million, non-GAAP operating margin of 23.2% of revenue, and non-GAAP net income of $315 million, or $1.80 per diluted share for the June 2016 quarter.

“Lam delivered another record quarter in shipments, revenues and non-GAAP net income, validating the importance of having the right products at the right time to address industry enabling technology inflections that are critical to powering a new generation of semiconductor devices in a world that is now clearly, more than Moore,” said Martin Anstice, Lam Research’s President and Chief Executive Officer. “We continue to see strong momentum for differentiated products and services addressing key applications including multi-patterning, 3D device architecture and advanced packaging.  The combination of our technology leadership, disciplined operational execution and close partnerships with customers positions us for our fifth straight calendar year of revenue growth of approximately 18% annually over that period, record performance in 2016 and a favorable forward looking multi-year growth outlook."

Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Results

Cash and cash equivalents, short-term investments, and restricted cash and investments balances increased to $7.5 billion at the end of the September 2016 quarter compared to $7.1 billion at the end of the June 2016 quarter. This increase was primarily the result of approximately $473 million in cash flows from operating activities which was partially offset by approximately $42 million of capital expenditures; and approximately $48 million of dividends paid to stockholders during the September 2016 quarter. As a result of the October 5, 2016 termination of the Agreement and Plan of Merger and Reorganization with KLA-Tencor, our Senior Notes maturing in 2023 and 2026 were redeemed on October 13, 2016 under the Special Mandatory Redemption terms of the indenture governing these Notes, thereby reducing our cash and cash equivalents and short-term investments balance by approximately $1.6 billion.

Deferred revenue at the end of the September 2016 quarter increased to $704 million as compared to $566 million at the end of the June 2016 quarter. Deferred profit at the end of the September 2016 quarter increased to $418 million as compared to $349 million at the end of the June 2016 quarter. Lam’s deferred revenue balance does not include shipments to Japanese customers, to whom title does not transfer until customer acceptance. Shipments to Japanese customers are classified as inventory at cost until the time of acceptance. The estimated future revenue from shipments to Japanese customers was approximately $65 million as of September 25, 2016.

Geographic Distribution

The geographic distribution of shipments and revenue during the September 2016 quarter is shown in the following table:

Outlook

For the December 2016 quarter, Lam is providing the following guidance:

The information provided above is only an estimate of what the Company believes is realizable as of the date of this release, and does not incorporate the potential impact of any business combinations, asset acquisitions, divestitures, financing arrangements, other investments, or other significant transactions that may be completed after the date of this release. GAAP to non-GAAP reconciling items provided include only those items that are known and can be estimated as of the date of this release. Actual results will vary from this model and the variations may be material. Reconciling items included above are as follows:

• Gross Margin - amortization related to intangible assets acquired in the Novellus transaction, $21 million.
  
• Operating margin - amortization related to intangible assets acquired in the Novellus transaction, $37 million.
  
• Earnings per share - amortization related to intangible assets acquired in the Novellus transaction, $37 million; amortization of note discounts, $6 million; special mandatory redemption fees, accelerated amortization of loan issuance costs and debt discounts, and interest expense, net associated with the early redemption of the KLA-Tencor acquisition funding, $37 million; and associated tax benefit for non-GAAP items ($20) million; totaling $60 million.
  
• Diluted share count - impact of a note hedge issued contemporaneously with the convertible notes due 2018, 2 million shares.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Results

In addition to U.S. GAAP results, this press release also contains non-GAAP financial results. The Company’s non-GAAP results for both the September 2016 and June 2016 quarters exclude amortization related to intangible assets acquired in the Novellus transaction, costs associated with campus consolidation, the amortization of note discounts, costs associated with the KLA-Tencor acquisition and tax benefit of non-GAAP items. Additionally, the June 2016 quarter non-GAAP results exclude Novellus acquisition-related inventory fair value impact, restructuring charges, gain on sale of real property, net of associated exit costs, amortization of bridge loan issuance costs and other related fees associated with the KLA-Tencor acquisition, change in income tax benefit from a court ruling, and income tax benefit on resolution of certain tax matters.

Management uses non-GAAP gross margin, operating income, operating expenses, operating margin, net income, and net income per diluted share to evaluate the Company’s operating and financial results. The Company believes the presentation of non-GAAP results is useful to investors for analyzing business trends and comparing performance to prior periods, along with enhancing investors’ ability to view the Company’s results from management’s perspective. Tables presenting reconciliations of non-GAAP results to U.S. GAAP results are included at the end of this press release and on the Company’s website at http://investor.lamresearch.com. 

Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Statements 

Statements made in this press release that are not of historical fact are forward-looking statements and are subject to the safe harbor provisions created by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements relate to, but are not limited to; the estimated future revenue from shipments to Japanese customers; economic and market conditions in the industry and their impact on technology inflections; our growth revenue and performance outlooks and their drivers: the extent of our underlying fundamentals and multi-year outperformance opportunities and our ability to strengthen those positions and accelerate innovation for the benefit of our customers; the legal and business factors that may affect our future tax rate; and our guidance for shipments, revenue, gross margin, operating margin, net income or earnings per diluted share, and diluted share count. Some factors that may affect these forward-looking statements include: business conditions in the consumer electronics industry, the semiconductor industry and the overall economy may deteriorate or change; and the actions of our customers and competitors may be inconsistent with our expectations, as well as the other risks and uncertainties that are described in the documents filed or furnished by us with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including specifically the Risk Factors described in our annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended June 26, 2016. These uncertainties and changes could materially affect the forward looking statements and cause actual results to vary from expectations in a material way. The Company undertakes no obligation to update the information or statements made in this release.

About Lam Research

Lam Research Corp. (NASDAQ:LRCX) is a trusted global supplier of innovative wafer fabrication equipment and services to the semiconductor industry. Lam's broad portfolio of market-leading deposition, etch, and clean solutions helps customers achieve success on the wafer by enabling device features that are 1,000 times smaller than a grain of sand, resulting in smaller, faster, more powerful, and more power-efficient chips. Through collaboration, continuous innovation, and delivering on commitments, Lam is transforming atomic-scale engineering and enabling its customers to shape the future of technology. Based in Fremont, Calif., Lam Research is a Nasdaq-100 Index® and S&P 500® company whose common stock trades on the Nasdaq Global Select Market^SM under the symbol LRCX. For more information, please visit http://www.lamresearch.com. (LRCX-F)

Consolidated Financial Tables Follow.