TI sees auto semi market bounce back in third quarter

 

Texas Instruments saw a rebound in semiconductors sold into the auto and personal electronics markets in the third quarter amid the relentless global pandemic, the company reported Tuesday.

Overall, third quarter revenue at TI was $3.82 billion with net income of $1.35 billion.  Revenues were up 1% compared to the third quarter a year ago. For the fourth quarter, the world’s seventh largest semiconductor company projected revenues in the range of $3.41 billion to $3.69 billion.

For the auto segment, the revenue improvement was 75% over the second quarter, although TI didn’t offer a dollar amount. The improvement came on the heels of 40% decline in auto revenues in the second quarter over a year earlier, company officials said.  

The second quarter decline came with car plant closures due to COVID-19, but re-openings of plants in Europe and North America have helped stabilize the revenues for TI.  Nonetheless, TI did not project auto chip or other segment sales for the fourth quarter.

Dave Pahl, vice president and head of investor relations, said on a call with analysts that the position of TI is to remain “cautious” as the impact from COVID-19 could last several years.

Personal electronics were also a bright spot, with revenues up by 20% over the second quarter and 15% over a year ago.  Many semiconductor companies have reported growth in processors for laptops with work from home and learning from home.

Analog revenue grew by 7% over a year ago, while embedded processing declined by 10%. Analog revenues were $2.8 billion, while embedded was $651 million.  Cash on hand at the end of the quarter was $5.2 billion.

TI shares closed slightly higher on the Nasdaq at $150.83 on Tuesday, but began to climb another 1% in after hours trading.

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