Broadcom's Brutal Blueprints: Fool by Numbers

Recs

4

Special Offer!

Jan 12, Motley Fool Pro will accept new members for 10 days only. Your spot is reserved! To learn more, click below.

On Oct. 23, communications chip maker Broadcom (Nasdaq: BRCM) released third-quarter earnings for the period ended Sept. 30, 2007.

  • Operating income dropped 97% to a mere $1.5 million -- mostly because the research and development budget increased by 29% while sales only grew 5.2%. A technology business can commit worse crimes in this Fool's book than investing in R&D.
  • The bottom line was rescued from the Red Ink Sea by the balance sheet. The strong and debt-free cash balance generated $31.4 million in net interest income.
  • As shocking as these numbers may look when compared to the year-ago period, it's simply the logical continuation of a broader trend. Fellow Fool Dave Mock can explain it in plain English.

(Figures in millions, except per-share data)

Income Statement Highlights

Q3 2007

Q3 2006

Change

Sales

$950.0

$902.6

5.2%

Net Profit

$27.8

$110.2

(74.8%)

EPS

$0.05

$0.19

(73.7%)

Diluted Shares

577.6

572.6

0.9%

Get back to basics with the income statement.

Margin Checkup

Q3 2007

Q3 2006

Change*

Gross Margin

51%%

50.1%

0.8

Operating Margin

0.2%

6%%

(5.9)

Net Margin

2.9%

12.2%

(9.3)

*Expressed in percentage points.

Margins are the earnings engine.

Balance Sheet Highlights

Assets

Q3 2007

Q3 2006

Change

Cash + ST Invest.

$2,346.1

$2,377.2

(1.3%)

Accounts Rec.

$395.7

$424.3

(6.7%)

Inventory

$213.2

$223.5

(4.6%)

Liabilities

Q3 2007

Q3 2006

Change

Accounts Payable

$349.8

$240.4

45.5%

       

The balance sheet reflects the company's health.

Cash Flow Highlights

Q3 2007

Q3 2006

Change

Cash From Ops.

$211.9

$229.9

(7.8%)

Capital Expenditures

$15.9

$19.9

(20%)

Free Cash Flow

$195.9

$209.9

(6.7%)

Owner Earnings

$38.9

$104.8

(62.9%)

Free cash flow is a Fool's best friend.

Competitive Context

Market Cap

 P/E Ratio

CAPS Rating

Intel (Nasdaq: INTC)

$150,026

24.2

***

Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN)

$44,007

18.5

****

Broadcom

$18,750

80.5

****

Marvell Technology Group (Nasdaq: MRVL)

$10,001

N/A

****

Conexant Systems (Nasdaq: CNXT)

$633

N/A

****

Using the latest reported numbers from Capital IQ. Nobody is anybody without some context.

Related Foolishness:

"The most exciting development in my lifetime!" 15 years ago, Motley Fool founder David Gardner uncovered a secret that changed how he'd invest forever. It can make you money in up, down, and rollercoaster markets. To learn more, enter your email address now.

Comments from our Foolish Readers

Help us keep this a respectfully Foolish area! This is a place for our readers to discuss, debate, and learn more about the Foolish investing topic you read about above. Help us keep it clean and safe. If you believe a comment is abusive or otherwise violates our Fool's Rules, please report it via the Report this Comment Report this Comment icon found on every comment.

Be the first one to comment on this article.

Compare Brokers

TD AMERITRADE
more info
ShareBuilder
more info
Power E*Trade

more info
Scottrade
more info
Fool Disclosure

DocumentId: 539072, ~/articles/articlehandler.aspx, 1/9/2009 1:40:55 AM

Sign up for FREE Motley Fool site access to keep reading:

“Broadcom's Brutal Blueprints: Fool by Numbers”

Signing up allows you to comment on articles and on the discussion boards.

It's completely FREE and will take only 10 seconds.

Privacy / Legal Information

We will use your email address only to keep you informed about updates to our web site and about other products and services that we think might interest you. The Motley Fool respects your privacy. Please read our Privacy Statement

.

Report This Comment

Use this area to report a comment that you believe is in violation of the community guidelines. Our team will review the entry and take any appropriate action.

Sending report...

What Fools Are Saying

Most Recommended

Jan 8 at 4:06 PM

Market Summary

DJIA 8,742.46 -27.24 -0.31%
S&P 500 909.73 +3.08 +0.34%
NASD 1,617.01 +17.95 +1.12%
Sponsored by:

Related Tickers

Broadcom Corp

CAPS Rating 3/5 Stars

$17.53

-0.30 (-1.68%)

Outperform659

Underperform62

Rate This Stock