Analog semiconductor manufacturer Skyworks Solutions (SWKS +0.04%) recently reported strong fiscal first-quarter results that came in ahead of management's guidance. Traders cheered the report, sending shares up by double digits.
While Skyworks' press release had a lot of good information to share, the company's conference call is also a great source of additional insights. Below are five must-read quotes from the call.
Image source: Getty Images.
On diversifying the business
One of the biggest knocks against Skyworks is that the company is overly reliant on Apple (AAPL +0.34%). That argument holds water today, as the Mac maker still accounts for more than 40% of Skyworks' total revenue.
However, management affirmed on the call that the company is growing quite well with all of its customers, not just Apple. Here's what CEO Liam Griffin had to say about the company's growth excluding its "largest customer":
Our growth and success outside of our largest customer has been outstanding. Huawei became the No. 2 account for us this last quarter. They're going to continue to be one of our leaders. We have our customer in Korea who will continue to grow significantly into 2017. And our largest customers will set up very well for us as well, as we address some very complex architectures with compelling products. So we feel really good about that on the mobile side.
And then let me remind you that the broad market portfolio, from infrastructure to IoT [Internet of Things] to early stages of automotive, all look good, and the staff there are double-digit year over year.
CEO Griffin also rattled off several examples of new-design wins or expanding relationships with these other customers. Specifically, he called out relationships with companies such as Comcast, Netgear, Ubiquiti Networks, Xiaomi, "multiple tier 1 OEMs," among others.
On returning to year-over-year growth
Apple's decision in 2016 to reduce its channel inventory levels had a big impact on Skyworks. In fact, Skyworks revenue declined year over year in each of the last three quarterly reports, which isn't something that growth investors like to see.
Thankfully, CFO Kris Sennesael says that the days of declining sales growth are over:
I think we've weathered a bit of a storm here in 2016 and most of the clouds there have abated. And it's not just market shifts. We're gaining share, we're creating new content, we're expanding in IoT and in broad markets, and it's meaningful, and it's sustainable. We're confident that the second half for us ... should be a double-digit growth rate year-over-year.
For the upcoming quarter, management is guiding for revenue growth of 8% and earnings-per-share growth of 12%. That's got to make bulls smile from ear to ear.
On the next phase of growth
It is possible that smartphone sales are nearing a plateau, so Skyworks likes to remind investors that a few technologies will be hitting the mass market soon that could drive the company's next phase of growth. Specifically, management remains uber-bullish on the opportunities that will be opened up once 5G network technology and autonomous driving become a part of everyday life.
Here's CEO Griffin talking about the potential of 5G network technology:
[M]arket projections suggest 5G data rates will approach 10x the speed of current 4G and LTE systems. To put this in perspective, downloading a full-length HD movie in 3G took 1 day. In 4G the same file took minutes. On a 5G network, this content will be downloaded in mere seconds.
And Griffin commenting on the extreme data needs of autonomous vehicles:
Looking out over the next few years, the amount of data that will be delivered to and from the car is estimated to be 5 to 10 times more than the bandwidth used by today's smartphone. For instance, by 2020, a single autonomous car is expected to consume 4,000 gigabits of data per day in real-time diagnostics, positioning, vehicle-to-vehicle communications. And that's equivalent to the daily data consumed by more than 2,000 smartphone users in 2017.
On taking care of shareholders
Skyworks has been returning its excess capital to shareholders for years in the form of buybacks and dividend payments. Here's CFO Sennesael commenting on the company's recent actions to continue to reward shareholders:
We are definitely committed to continuing to return cash to the shareholder with our dividend program and our share buyback program. We returned $106 million in Q1, repurchasing 1.4 million shares in Q1.
And so we have now put in place a new $500 million program. Historically, we have been returning 40%, 50% of our free cash flow to the shareholders, and so that's something that we will continue to do so.
All in all, Skyworks delivered an excellent quarter, and provided shareholders with plenty of reasons to remain optimistic.
