ASML Holding NV , a critical supplier to the global chipmaking industry, reported mixed first-quarter earnings Wednesday, though the group continues to face demand for its equipment that outstrips supply.
The Dutch company’s U.S.-listed stock was near 3% higher in the U.S. premarket trade, even though it said that net income for the first three months of 2022 had more than halved from the previous quarter. The stock remains down more than 22% this year.
ASML (ticker: ASML) reported net income of €695 million ($752 million) in the first quarter on sales of €3.5 billion, delivering earnings per share (EPS) of €1.73. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had expected net income of almost €720 million and EPS of €1.75, but ASML’s revenue beat estimates by around €50 million.
ASML, which supplies the ‘lithography’ machines that are essential for manufacturing semiconductors, said bookings remained strong as customers increased capacity amid the global chip shortage and that it was actively working to “significantly” expand capacity with its supply chain partners.
The group’s net orders, or the value of new bookings, was reported at almost €7 billion, ahead of the €3.7 billion figure eyed by analysts.
“We continue to see that the demand for our systems is higher than our current production capacity,” ASML chief executive Peter Wennink said in a statement. “In light of the demand and our plans to increase capacity, we expect to revisit our scenarios for 2025 and growth opportunities beyond,” he added saying the company would communicate updates in the second half of the year.
ASML forecast second-quarter net sales of between €5.1 billion and €5.3 billion, lower than the estimated €5.8 billion consensus on FactSet, with a gross margin between 49% and 50%. The company kept its guidance for 20% revenue growth for the full year.
Write to Lina Saigol at [email protected]
