Shares of Santa Ana-based TTM Technologies Inc., a maker of printed circuit boards for networking gear and consumer electronics, slumped on Thursday after the company gave a lukewarm outlook for the current quarter.
Investors sent shares down 3% in afterhours trading on a recent market value of $1.5 billion.
TTM said it expects to see first-quarter profits of $28 million to $35 million, in line with Wall Street’s expected profits of about $31 million.
The company sees sales coming in at $338 million to $358 million, with the low end of the range below the $358 million analysts had been expecting.
TTM said the outlook “reflects normal seasonality.” The first quarter tends to be a slower one for electronics makers after the big year-end build up to the holidays.
The outlook comes on the heels of TTM’s results for the fourth quarter, which bested Wall Street’s estimates.
Excluding charges for acquisitions, restructuring, income taxes and other onetime costs, TTM posted $40 million in profits, up more than 200% from a year earlier and beating analysts’ expected $37 million in profits.
The company tallied sales of $378 million, up 152% from a year earlier and just ahead of analysts’ expectations of $377 million in sales.
TTM saw a big boost in sales due to strong demand for circuit boards “used in touchpad tablets, networking equipment and smartphones,” Chief Executive Kent Alder said.
“Our better than expected results for the fourth quarter capped a remarkable year for TTM. We continue to benefit from robust growth in our Asia Pacific operations and solid performance in our North America operations,” he said.
About a year ago, the company wrapped up a buy that boosted profits, paved the way into new markets and provided a bigger foothold in Asia. It paid $521 million for the circuit board business of Hong Kong’s Meadville Holdings Ltd.
The deal helped TTM just about double its sales last year. For 2010, company saw sales jump to $1.2 billion, up from $583 million in 2009.
The Meadville deal also gave TTM seven plants in China, adding 13,000 workers to its ranks. The company has some 400 workers in Orange County.
