Jeff Jones
Analyst · Needham & Company. Please proceed with your question
Thanks Luis. Cohu’s Q1 generally exceeded our revised expectations, as we generated non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA of 15% on sales of $95.2 million. Cohu’s first-quarter results were stronger across each business unit including our contactor business, which represented approximately 11% of first-quarter sales. For Q1, the GAAP to non-GAAP adjustments include approximately $1.7 million of stock-based compensation expense, $1.1 million of purchased intangible amortization expense, $296,000 of acquisition costs related to Xcerra, and a credit of $147,000 to adjust the earn-out valuation from the Kita acquisition. My comments that follow including the Q2 guidance are all based on Cohu’s non-GAAP results, which exclude the impact of these items. Sales for the quarter were $95.2 million, and above our revised guidance of approximately $93 million as announced on March 21st. One customer in the automotive market represented approximately 12% of sales. No other customer exceeded 10% of sales in the first quarter. Q1 gross margin was 42.4% and below our increased guidance, primarily due to a shift in product mix during the last two weeks of March. Operating expenses for the first quarter of 2018 were $27.5 million and below our updated guidance of $28.3 million due to product development materials and outside services forecasted for late Q1, which have now moved into Q2. Q1 operating expenses included a foreign currency loss of approximately $1.6 million. The non-GAAP effective tax rate for Q1 was 20% and higher than our annual forecast mainly due to the accrual of foreign withholding taxes in the event we repatriate funds to the US. As I mentioned before, our tax rate continues to benefit from profit generated outside the US in countries with lower statutory income tax rates and in certain countries where Cohu has income tax holidays. Furthermore, the new tax rates will also benefit the company from profits generated in the US that are taxable along with those which do not currently incur a tax provision because of our valuation allowance. As a result of these factors, we are expecting our effective tax rate to be approximately 17% for Q2 and 18% for the full year 2018. Accounts receivable increased sequentially by $14.1 million and DSO also increased by six days to 81. Inventory was flat sequentially with inventory days decreasing by 12 to a 108. Accounts payable days increased by 2 days to 71 days. Overall, the cash conversion cycle improved by four days to 119 days. Fixed asset additions in Q1 were approximately $1.1 million and depreciation was $1.4 million. Cash declined quarter-over-quarter by a $15.6 million as a result of an increase in working capital of $11.2 million and the typical cash payments that are specific to Q1, including variable compensation and income taxes on RSU vesting. Additionally we made a $1.5 million earn-out payment in Q1 related to the Kita acquisition. Deferred profit at the end of March was $3 million. That is down from $6.6 million at the end of the fourth quarter. The related deferred revenue at the end of Q1 was $5.9 million, down $4.6 million sequentially. Cohu’s Board of Directors approved a quarterly cash dividend of $0.06 per share, payable on July 27, 2018, to shareholders of record on June 15, 2018. And now moving to our guidance for Q2. We expect Q2 sales to be approximately $99 million, which reflects an increase of approximately 11% in revenue during the first six months of 2018 compared to the same period last year. Gross margin in Q2 is expected to be approximately 41.5%, and operating expenses for the second quarter are expected to be approximately $24.5 million. I will now turn it back to Luis to discuss the exciting news today regarding our acquisition of Xcerra.
Luis Müller: Thanks Jeff. So today is a very exciting day for Cohu. Earlier this morning, Cohu and Xcerra announced the signing of a definitive agreement unanimously approved by both companies’ board of directors, under which Cohu will acquire all outstanding Xcerra shares in a cash and stock transaction. Upon close, this transaction is expected to be immediately accretive and generate significant long-term shareholder value, as well as be beneficial for customers and employees. This transaction is a powerful combination of two complementary companies that will accelerate our strategy to diversify our product offerings, and strengthen our position as a global leader in backend semiconductor equipment. The depth and breadth of the combined product portfolios, engineering and product development resources, as well as global customer support will enable us to deliver comprehensive semiconductor backend solutions that better meets the future needs of our customers. This acquisition meets our previously stated acquisition criteria, enabling Cohu expand into profitable and complementary markets, and delivering margins in line with our midterm financial model. This day has been a long time coming. Xcerra’s CEO, Dave Tacelli, and I first met over three years ago and have kept in touch over time. Through our discussions it became clear that the potential of our two companies combined could surpass what each of us could do individually. Now I will walk through the details of the transaction and its strategic rationale. For those following along with the slides we posted on our website, please turn to Slide 3, I will start with the strategic rationale combining Cohu and Xcerra made sense for a number of reasons. The transaction brings together complementary products in core test and inspection handlers, test contactors and expands our product portfolio into semiconductor and PCB test equipment. The combination broadens our existing footprint in key high-growth areas, particularly in the secular growth markets of automotive, industrial, IoT and mobility. The combined company will serve a total addressable market of about $5 billion with a highly diversified customer base. On the next page, the combined company has increased scale, revenues of approximately $800 million and a strong margin profile. The product portfolio is highly complementary and diversified across backend semiconductor and printed circuit board manufacturing. Now turning to Slide 5, joining forces with Xcerra is highly aligned with our strategy. Our test and inspection handler and consumable businesses are complementary and combining them drives scale, enhance customer relevance along with the ability to increase investments over the longer-term in more fundamental technologies. Xcerra also expands our business into adjacent markets such as automated test equipment and PCB manufacturing. Turning to page 6, with our core test and inspection handlers the combined company brings together broader application coverage across the various semiconductor device segments. Both companies are well established across key end-market applications, particularly focused in automotive, industrial, IoT and mobility. Now on page 7, the test contactor business is a key strategic objective of Cohu and this acquisition will provide new cross-selling opportunities with handlers, and accelerate knowledge development to better address customer challenges. Test contactors is a $720 million fragmented space, growing with semiconductor unit volume and challenge to resolve tough requirements in signal integrity, thermal management and performance interacting both with the automated test equipment and the handler. We see opportunities to address these requirements and accelerate the pace of innovation in new solutions to customers. Onto page 8, the transaction expands our product portfolio adding leading capabilities for certain segments of semiconductor test. Xcerra gained significant momentum in SoC test over the past 18 months, while outgrowing the competition and the market with cost-effective solutions in RF, RFPA, power management and digital applications on Diamondx and new market penetration in flat panel display drivers. Now turning to page 9, both Cohu and Xcerra are focused on the attractive and growing automotive, industrial, IoT and mobility end markets. With the acquisition of Xcerra, we strengthen our position in both automotive and industrial semiconductor applications. If you turn to the next page, you will see that these markets are growing more rapidly than the overall semiconductor industry. The proliferation of IoT applications has positively impacted our business across multiple segments. On page 11, the acquisition of Xcerra diversifies Cohu’s revenue base and increases our addressable market to approximately $5 billion across handlers, contactors, inspection and automated test equipment strengthening our ability to capitalize on secular growth opportunities in the automotive, IoT, industrial and mobility. The combination creates a global leader in backend semiconductor equipment with combined company revenue of approximately $800 million, and we see opportunities for future growth by providing customers with a complete portfolio of solutions for semiconductor manufacturing. I will now hand it over to Jeff for more details on the financial aspects of the transaction.