Firing on All Cylinders: Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) Q3 Earnings Lead the Way
As Q3 earnings season comes to a close, it’s time to take stock of this quarter's best and worst performers amongst the semiconductor manufacturing stocks, including Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) and its peers.
The semiconductor industry is driven by demand for advanced electronic products like smartphones, PCs, servers, and data storage. The need for technologies like artificial intelligence, 5G networks, and smart cars is also creating the next wave of growth for the industry. Keeping up with this dynamism requires new tools that can design, fabricate, and test chips at ever smaller sizes and more complex architectures, creating a dire need for semiconductor capital manufacturing equipment.
The 14 semiconductor manufacturing stocks we track reported a mixed Q3; on average, revenues beat analyst consensus estimates by 0.6% while next quarter's revenue guidance was 3.9% below consensus. Stocks have faced challenges as investors prioritize near-term cash flows, but semiconductor manufacturing stocks held their ground better than others, with the share prices up 24% on average since the previous earnings results.
Best Q3: Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB)
Sporting a global footprint of facilities, Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) is a manufacturer of photomasks, templates used to transfer patterns onto semiconductor wafers.
Photronics reported revenues of $227.5 million, up 8.2% year on year, topping analyst expectations by 1.6%. It was a very strong quarter for the company, with a significant improvement in its inventory levels and an impressive beat of analysts' EPS estimates.
“We delivered our sixth consecutive year of record revenue with growth in fourth quarter amidst a prolonged industry downturn,” said Frank Lee, chief executive officer.
The stock is up 37% since the results and currently trades at $29.64.
Is now the time to buy Photronics? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it's free.
Nova (NASDAQ:NVMI)
Headquartered in Israel, Nova (NASDAQ: NVMI) is a provider of quality control systems used in semiconductor manufacturing.
Nova reported revenues of $128.8 million, down 10.5% year on year, outperforming analyst expectations by 4.6%. It was a strong quarter for the company, with a significant improvement in its inventory levels and an impressive beat of analysts' EPS estimates.
Nova delivered the biggest analyst estimates beat among its peers. The stock is up 35.4% since the results and currently trades at $137.71.
Is now the time to buy Nova? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it's free.
Slowest Q3: IPG Photonics (NASDAQ:IPGP)
Both a designer and manufacturer of its products, IPG Photonics (NASDAQ:IPGP) is a provider of high-performance fiber lasers used for cutting, welding, and processing raw materials.
IPG Photonics reported revenues of $301.4 million, down 13.6% year on year, falling short of analyst expectations by 4%. It was a weak quarter for the company, with underwhelming revenue guidance for the next quarter.
The stock is up 16.6% since the results and currently trades at $97.33.
Read our full analysis of IPG Photonics's results here.
Teradyne (NASDAQ:TER)
Sporting most major chip manufacturers as its customers, Teradyne (NASDAQ:TER) is a US-based supplier of automated test equipment for semiconductors as well as other technologies and devices.
Teradyne reported revenues of $703.7 million, down 14.9% year on year, surpassing analyst expectations by 2.9%. It was a mixed quarter for the company, with a significant improvement in its inventory levels but underwhelming revenue guidance for the next quarter.
The stock is up 21.5% since the results and currently trades at $106.78.
Read our full, actionable report on Teradyne here, it's free.
Semtech (NASDAQ:SMTC)
Operating for more than 60 years, Semtech (NASDAQ:SMTC) is a provider of analog and mixed-signal semiconductors used for Internet of Things systems and cloud connectivity.
Semtech reported revenues of $200.9 million, up 13.1% year on year, in line with analyst expectations. It was a weak quarter for the company, with underwhelming revenue guidance for the next quarter and a decline in its operating margin.
Semtech achieved the fastest revenue growth among its peers. The stock is up 18.9% since the results and currently trades at $19.85.
Read our full, actionable report on Semtech here, it's free.
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The author has no position in any of the stocks mentioned
