Electro Scientific Now Sees Higher-than-expected Q3 Results; Stock Climbs

(RTTNews) - Shares of Electro Scientific Industries, Inc. (ESIO) climbed around 25 percent in the extended trading on Wednesday after the semiconductor testing equipment maker said it expects to report higher-than-expected results in its third quarter. Further, the company said it now expect fourth quarter 2018 and first quarter 2019 revenues to approximate the same level as the third quarter, citing the strong demand and its elevated backlog position.

For the third quarter, ESI expects to report revenue of between $106 and $111 million, and adjusted earnings per share to exceed the guided range provided on November 1.

The innovator in laser-based manufacturing solutions for the micro-machining industry previously was projecting third-quarter adjusted earnings per share of $0.48 to $0.60 and revenues of $80 to $90 million.

On average, three analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expect third-quarter earnings of $0.55 per share on revenues of $85 million. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

The company also expects to report third quarter bookings of approximately $134 million, up from $44.1 million last year.

Michael Burger, President and CEO of ESI, said, "I'm pleased the market conditions we experienced in the summer of 2017 continued into the December quarter, enabling us to deliver another exceptional quarter with both our top and bottom line results projected to exceed expectations. Our strong results continue to be driven primarily by capacity expansion in the flexible circuit market which generated strong demand for our industry-leading laser drilling products."

ESI management, including CEO Michael Burger, will discuss ESI's strategy and outlook, including these preliminary results, on, January 18, at the Needham Growth Conference in New York City.

The company anticipates reporting its full third quarter financial results on January 31.

ESI shares settled at $22.01 on Wednesday's regular trading, up 9.50%. In the after hours trading, shares gained 24.7 percent further to $27.44.