Image source: TowerJazz.
Tower Semiconductor (TSEM +10.66%), the Israeli chip foundry also known as TowerJazz, reported fourth-quarter results today.
Sales decreased 9% year over year due to a contractual volume decrease in the important Micron Technology (MU +4.80%) partnership, effective three quarters ago. However, the $135 million tally was a 2% sequential increase from third-quarter results and in line with analyst projections.
Adjusted earnings shrank 24% year over year, landing at $0.34 per share. Here, analysts would have settled for $0.29 per share.
Management underscored that organic revenues increased 25% year over year if you set the Micron adjustment aside. Moreover, a new partnership with Panasonic should more than make up for the lost Micron revenue, starting in the second quarter of 2014.
As a reminder, the Panasonic joint venture is expected to add roughly $400 million to TowerJazz's annual revenues, and comes with a five-year commitment. Total revenues for the 2013 fiscal year stopped at $505 million.
CEO Russell Ellwanges sees TowerJazz generating reliable profits in 2014, thanks to organic growth and the big-ticket Panasonic agreement. "We expect to break $900 million revenue annual run rate starting the second quarter and to continue and surpass the $1 billion revenue run rate with sustainable GAAP net profit," he said. In 2013, TowerJazz reported a GAAP net loss of $2.72 per share.
