Vishay reports Q4 2003

* Sales for Fourth Quarter 2003 increased 24% to $567,199,000 compared to Fourth Quarter 2002; and increased sequentially 7% over Third Quarter 2003 sales of $533,168,000* Bookings for Fourth Quarter 2003 increased 51% to $648 million compared to Fourth Quarter 2002; and increased sequentially 18% over Third Quarter 2003 bookings of $550 million* Book-to-Bill for Fourth Quarter 2003 was 1.14; Actives Book-to-Bill was 1.23 and Passives Book-to-Bill was 1.06* Backlog increased by $98 million during Fourth Quarter 2003 to $532 million* Cash balance at December 31, 2003 was $555 millionDr. Felix Zandman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Vishay Intertechnology, Inc. (NYSE: VSH), announced that sales for the quarter ended December 31, 2003 were $567,199,000, as compared to sales of $459,377,000 for the quarter ended December 31, 2002. Net earnings for the quarter ended December 31, 2003 were $10,339,000 or $0.06 per share, compared with a net loss for the quarter ended December 31, 2002 of $123,765,000 or $0.78 per share. Earnings for the quarter ended December 31, 2003 were impacted by restructuring and severance costs of $10,302,000 and a write-down of tantalum inventories on hand to market value of $1,221,000, offset by a gain on an insurance claim of $3,545,000. These items and their tax related consequences had a negative $0.03 effect on earnings per share. The quarter ended December 31, 2002 included charges for restructuring, inventory write- downs, a loss on purchase commitments, and other charges of $162,400,000 resulting in a reduction of $0.83 in net earnings per share.Sales for the year ended December 31, 2003 were $2,170,597,000 compared to sales of $1,822,813,000 for the year ended December 31, 2002. Net earnings for the year ended December 31, 2003 were $26,842,000 or $0.17 per share, compared with a net loss for the year ended December 31, 2002 of $92,614,000 or $0.58 per share. Earnings for the year ended December 31, 2003 were impacted by restructuring and severance costs of $29,560,000, a loss on extinguishment of debt of $9,910,000, a loss on long-term purchase commitments of $11,392,000, and a write-down of tantalum inventories on hand to market value of $5,406,000, offset by a gain on an insurance claim of $33,906,000. These items and their tax related consequences had a negative $0.11 effect on earnings per share. The year ended December 31, 2002 included charges for restructuring, inventory write-downs, a loss on purchase commitments and other charges of $169,900,000 resulting in a reduction of $0.85 in net earnings per share.Source: PCBnewsline