What happened

The stock of Indie Semiconductor (INDI 2.38%) is losing ground today following the publication of the company's second-quarter results. The share price was down 8.3% as of 1 p.m. ET on Friday, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence.

Indie Semiconductor released its second-quarter report after the market closed Thursday, posting sales and earnings for the period that actually beat the market's expectations. The company recorded a loss of $0.09 per share on revenue of $52.1 million, while the average analyst estimate had called for a per-share loss of $0.20 on sales of $52 million.

Despite the top-line and bottom-line beats, it looks like management's guidance is causing investors to lose confidence in the stock. 

So what

Indie's revenue skyrocketed roughly 102% year over year in the second quarter, and its gross margin rose 363 basis points to reach 52.2.%. The chip specialist also landed a big contract with Bosch in the period. All in all, it was a strong quarter for the company, but there was one point in its guidance that seems to be worrying investors. 

Now what

Indie Semiconductor reiterated guidance that it would shift into posting positive operating income on an adjusted basis in the fourth quarter. The company also said that it expects third-quarter sales to more than double compared to the prior-year period. Full-year sales are also projected to double. 

When asked by an analyst about the company's guidance for positive adjusted operating income in the fourth quarter, chief financial officer Tom Schiller confirmed that he expected sales for the period to come in around $75 million with a gross margin of roughly 54%. The analyst had been modeling for break-even operating income based on assumptions of roughly $70 million in sales and a gross margin of 54%.

While Schiller's sales guidance came in significantly higher than the analyst's target, his projected gross margin fell short. Indie Semiconductor has been seeing strong gross-margin improvements, but it looks like investors are worried that room for margin expansion might be getting tapped out. If so, this could make it harder for the company to shift into profitability under generally accepted accounting principles.