ESI sales rebound but company posts loss

Portland, OR--Electro Scientific Industries, Inc. (NASDQ: ESIO) announced its financial results for its fiscal 2011 second quarter ended October 2, 2010. ESI reported revenue of $59.6 million in the second quarter compared to $58.5 million in the first quarter of 2011 and $27.6 million in the same quarter one year ago. Also during the quarter ESI acquired the assets of PyroPhotonics Lasers Inc. (Montreal, Canada), a manufacturer of tailored-pulse fiber lasers.

On a GAAP basis, net loss was $0.6 million or $0.02 per share, compared to net income of $0.2 million or $0.01 per diluted share in the prior quarter. On a non-GAAP basis, excluding the impact of purchase accounting, equity compensation and non-recurring items, second quarter net income was $2.9 million or $0.10 per diluted share, compared to net income of $0.8 million or $0.03 per diluted share in the first quarter.

"We saw excellent demand this quarter, with orders at $70 million. Solid revenue and improved gross margin yielded strong non-GAAP earnings," stated Nick Konidaris, president and CEO of ESI. For the first half of fiscal 2011, sales were $118 million, up 135% from the first half of last fiscal year.

Orders for the second quarter were $70.2 million, compared to $64.1 million in the prior quarter and up 139% from $29.3 million in the prior year's second quarter. Konidaris continued, "Our semiconductor and interconnect groups saw double-digit sequential order growth. We received orders from multiple customers in our DRAM repair business, including a large order from Hynix, and our flex circuit interconnect business had a record quarter."

Revenues increased 2% sequentially driven by strong orders and reduction of backlog in the interconnect and micromachining business.

Regarding the PyroPhotonics acquisition, Konidaris stated, "We are enthusiastic about tailored-pulse technology and its capability. Tailored-pulse technology has provided significant differentiated value in our market-leading DRAM repair tools. In addition, PyroPhotonics will allow us to enter and strengthen our position across multiple markets and applications, including solar."

For more information visit www.esi.com