In 2023, life for chip manufacturers will not be easy. In Q1 and Q2 of 2023, many original manufacturers’ performance was dismal, and they even encountered the lowest operating profits in more than ten years. In the second half of the year, overall the performance of chip manufacturers has recovered compared with the first half of the year.
Throughout the year, chip manufacturers continued to take actions to reduce costs and increase efficiency. According to public information, a total of 33 companies in the global semiconductor industry announced layoffs in 2023, involving 17,077 people. In China, 10,900 chip-related companies have been deregistered or revoked, a year-on-year increase of 69.8% and an increase of 89.7% from 5,746 in 2022, including well-known companies such as Zheku and Interstellar Meizu.
At the same time, according to International Data Corporation (IDC), global semiconductor revenue will grow to US$526.5 billion in 2023, a 12.0% decrease from US$598 billion in 2022.
Microchips:
Warning: Revenue drops 22% quarterly, employees take two weeks off
Microchip announced its preliminary financial report for the third fiscal quarter (ending December 31), showing that its revenue fell by 22% quarter-on-quarter, exceeding the company’s previous forecast of a 15%-20% decline, and also worse than the 17% decline predicted by Wall Street. Difference. Microchip CEO Ganesh Moorthy said: “Due to the weak economic environment during the quarter, our customers and distributors asked the company to reduce shipments to further reduce inventory risk.”
Microchip plans to furlough employees at its U.S. plant in Gresham for two weeks in March 2024 and possibly again in June due to a sharp drop in sales.
Qualcomm: Continued layoffs,
Fiscal 2023 revenue down 19% year-over-year
Qualcomm released its fourth fiscal quarter (as of September 24, 2023) and annual results for fiscal year 2023. Quarterly net profit fell 48% year-on-year, and annual net profit fell 44% year-on-year. However, its main smartphone business quarterly revenue showed a year-on-year decline. increase. Qualcomm’s revenue in fiscal year 2023 was US$35.820 billion, down 19% from the same period last year; GAAP net profit was US$7.232 billion, down 44% year-on-year; Non-GAAP net profit was US$2.277 billion, down 35% year-on-year. Qualcomm has given positive performance guidance for the first quarter of fiscal year 2024, mainly based on the fact that the decline in the smartphone market has slowed down and shows signs of positive recovery.
Qualcomm will continue to hear news of layoffs in 2023. In the first half of the year, it was rumored that Qualcomm would lay off 5% of its employees, and its mobile department would cut about 20%. In the second half of the year, it was rumored that it would lay off employees in Shanghai and Taiwan, and more than 1,200 people would be laid off in California.
ADI: Revenue increases in fiscal 2023
ADI’s fourth fiscal quarter (as of October 28, 2023) revenue was US$2.716 billion (approximately RMB 19.294 billion), compared with US$3.248 billion in the same period last year, a year-on-year decrease of 16%. Quarterly net profit was US$498 million, compared with US$936 million in the same period last year. Fiscal year revenue was US$12.306 billion, compared with US$12.014 billion in the previous fiscal year. Net profit for the fiscal year was US$3.315 billion, compared with US$2.749 billion in the previous fiscal year.
ADI is laying off 111 employees at its offices in north San Jose, with the layoffs expected to take effect on January 12, 2024, according to an official notification submitted by ADI to the California Employment Development Department (EDD).
Broadcom: Net revenue increases in fiscal 2023
Broadcom’s fourth fiscal quarter (as of October 29, 2023) net revenue was US$9.295 billion (approximately RMB 66.032 billion), compared with US$8.93 billion in the same period last year. Quarterly net profit was US$3.524 billion, compared with US$3.359 billion in the same period last year. Among them, semiconductor business revenue was US$7.326 billion, a year-on-year increase of 3%.
Net revenue for the fiscal year was US$35.819 billion (approximately RMB 254.440 billion), compared with US$33.203 billion the previous year. Net profit for the fiscal year was US$14.082 billion, compared with US$11.495 billion the previous year. Among them, semiconductor business revenue was US$28.182 billion, a year-on-year increase of 9%.
Broadcom estimates that after completing the US$60 billion acquisition of VMware, its revenue in fiscal year 2024 will be approximately US$50 billion, which is lower than the US$52.5 billion average forecast of analysts surveyed by LSEG.
ST: Expected full-year growth of 7.3% year-on-year
STMicroelectronics (ST) announced results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2023. ST reported third-quarter net revenue of $4.43 billion, gross profit margin of 47.6%, operating profit margin of 28.0%, and net profit of $1.09 billion. ST’s median forecast for fourth-quarter business is that net income will be US$4.30 billion, down approximately 3% year-on-year and quarter-on-quarter respectively; gross profit margin is expected to be approximately 46%. The focus of this outlook means that revenue for the full year of 2023 will be approximately US$17.3 billion (approximately RMB 122.891 billion), a year-on-year increase of 7.3%, and a gross profit margin of approximately 48.1%.
On January 10, 2024, ST announced an upcoming reorganization, which will take effect on February 5, 2024. Through this reorganization, the company will transition from three product divisions to two product divisions (APMS and MDRF), and Marco Monti, former president of ST’s Automotive and Discrete Products Group, will also leave the company.
Skyworks: Net revenue declines in fiscal 2023
Skyworks Solutions, a leader in mobile phone radio frequency, announced results for the fourth fiscal quarter and fiscal year ended September 29, 2023. Net revenue in the fourth fiscal quarter was US$1.219 billion (approximately RMB 8.659 billion), compared with US$1.407 billion in the same period last year. Quarterly net profit was US$245 million, compared with US$302 million in the same period last year. Net revenue for the fiscal year was US$4.772 billion (approximately RMB 33.898 billion), compared with US$5.486 billion the previous year. Net profit for the fiscal year was US$983 million, compared with US$1.275 billion the previous year.
Some China manufacturers:
Except for MCU, all products increased year-on-year.
MCU manufacturer Zhongying Electronics estimates that the net profit attributable to the parent company in 2023 will be 174 million yuan to 190 million yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 41% to 46% from 323 million yuan in 2022; Espressif Technology, the “No. 1 WiFi chip design stock”, initially estimates that in 2023 Annual operating income was 1.436 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 12.94%, and net profit attributable to the parent company was 128 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 31.67%; processor chip company Haiguang Information expects revenue in 2023 to be 5.68 billion-6.26 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 554 million -1.134 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 10.82%-22.14%, and net profit attributable to the parent company is 1.18 billion-1.32 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 46.85%-64.27%; wireless audio SoC chip manufacturer Zhongke Lanxun expects revenue in 2023 to be 1.43 billion Yuan -1.45 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 32.42%-34.27%, and net profit attributable to the parent company was 240 million yuan-260 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 70.34%-84.53%.
