Analyst raises forecast for foundry rivals TSMC, UMC
Analyst raises forecast for foundry rivals TSMC, UMC
By Silicon Strategies
September 30, 2003 (11:03 a.m. EST)
URL: http://www.eetimes.com/story/OEG20030930S0024
PORTLAND, Ore. A surge in wireless business has prompted a research firm to raise its forecasts for both Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (TSMC) and United Microelectronics Corp. (UMC) in the third and fourth quarters. The outlook appears to be somewhat brighter for silicon foundry giant TSMC, as compared to rival provider UMC, according to a report from investment banking firm Pacific Crest Securities Inc., based here. "We are raising our 2H03 estimates to reflect an improved revenue and gross-margin outlook for TSMC," wrote Michael McConnell, an analyst with Pacific Crest Securities. "We believe TSMC's baseband chip set customer forecasts remain strong for the remainder of the year, with wireline and consumer customers indicating more moderate growth, and PC customers flat," McConnell said. "Nvida's decision to manufacturer its NV36 graphics processor at IBM is one reason for the flat PC outlook at TSMC." TSMC's fab-util ization rate exceeds 90 percent, while its 130-nm yields are over 70 percent for most customer designs, McConnell said. The foundry giant was originally expected to earn $0.10 a share on sales of $1.54 billion in the third quarter. Now, the company is expected to earn $0.11 a share on sales of $1.583 billion in the quarter, according to the analyst. In the second quarter of this year, the company earned $0.08 on sales of $1.437 billion. While TSMC has firm bookings for only one third of the fourth quarter, company sales are expected to jump 3 percent in that period over the third quarter. TSMC was originally expected to earn $0.11 on sales of $1.619 billion in the fourth quarter. Now, it is expected to earn $0.12 on sales of $1.634 billion in the quarter, McConnell said. Like TSMC, UMC is also seeing strong demand from its wireless foundry customers. As a result, UMC's sales are expected to decline by a more moderate 2 percent in the third quarter, according to the report. UMC was originall y expected to earn $0.02 a share on sales of $599.5 million. Now, the company is expected to earn $0.02 a share on sales of $614 million in the third quarter. In the second quarter of 2003, the company earned $0.03 on sales of $627.2 million. The company is expected to see a 6 percent jump in fourth-quarter sales thanks to orders from consumer chip maker Mediatek. UMC was originally expected to earn $0.03 a share on sales of $628.4 million in the fourth quarter. Now, the company is expected to earn $0.03 a share on sales of $650.1 million in the quarter, the report said.
Related News
- TSMC Expects Flat Year for Foundry
- Intel and UMC Announce New Foundry Collaboration
- Siemens and TSMC collaborate to help mutual customers optimize designs using foundry's newest advancements
- 2022 to Mark the Third Year in a Row of ≥20% Growth for the Foundry Market
- IC Insights Raises Its 2021 Worldwide IC Market Forecast to +24%
Breaking News
- Thalia's AMALIA 24.2 introduces pioneering estimated parasitics feature to reduce PEX iterations by at least 30%
- TSMC plans 1.6nm process for 2026
- Qualitas Semiconductor Partners with TUV Rheinland Korea to Enhance ISO 26262 Functional Safety Management System
- M31 has successfully launched MIPI C/D PHY Combo IP on the advanced TSMC 5nm process
- Ceva multi-protocol wireless IP could simplify IoT MCU and SoC development
Most Popular
- Controversial former Arm China CEO founds RISC-V chip startup
- Siemens collaborates with TSMC on design tool certifications for the foundry's newest processes and other enablement milestones
- Credo at TSMC 2024 North America Technology Symposium
- Synopsys Accelerates Next-Level Chip Innovation on TSMC Advanced Processes
- Kalray Joins Arm Total Design, Extending Collaboration with Arm on Accelerated AI Processing
E-mail This Article | Printer-Friendly Page |