Anaheim-based Multi-Fineline Elec-tronix Inc., known as M-Flex for short, is a company worth watching.
Since M-Flex’s low-key initial public offering a year ago, which raised $56 million, its shares are up 75%.
And the company, which makes flexible printed circuit boards for wireless phones and other products, doesn’t seem to be slowing down.
Recently, M-Flex said it planned to buy photo imaging technology company Applied Optics Inc. for $6.3 million.
The buy is M-Flex’s first since going public. The deal gives M-Flex a 45,000-square-foot facility in Tucson along with several patents related to making optical and photonic electronics for photos, like those in wireless phones.
“This acquisition significantly expands our engineering ex-pertise and manufacturing capabilities aimed at capturing a portion of the substantial market opportunity for high-quality cameras in cell phones, which continues to evolve,” said Philip Harding, M-Flex’s chief executive. “This additional optics design expertise and manufacturing capability, combined with our new wire-bonding assembly capability in China, will make it possible for us to offer cell phone manufacturers a competitively-priced, higher-quality and eventually smaller-sized camera solution than what is currently available.”
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Printronix’s Singapore facility: company seeing slower orders from Asian and European buyers |
Cool Jazz
It’s always nice to have stock for opportune acquisitions,something Newport Beach-based Jazz Semiconductor Inc. only can look at with jealousy.
The contract chipmaker, an offshoot of Newport Beach’s Conexant Systems Inc., had planned to raise $150 million in a stock sale but withdrew its plans earlier this month.
In a Securities and Exchange Commission filing, Jazz cited market conditions for nixing the offering. Jazz’s public stock debut was seen coming as early as 2004. Conexant still owns some 40% of Jazz along with Washington, D.C.-based Carlyle Group, which owns 47%.
Jazz had about $225 million in sales for 2004, up from $185 million in 2003.
The company runs a former Conexant chip plant that produces semiconductors for Conexant and other companies. Many of Jazz’s customers, including Conexant, are struggling.
A Jazz offering had been part of Conexant’s long running restructuring, in which the company sold off businesses and spun off Newport Beach-based Mindspeed Technologies Inc.
An offering still could be in the offing (see story, page 1). But don’t be surprised if Carlyle buys out Conexant’s share of Jazz.
Western Digital’s Climb
Lake Forest-based Western Digital Corp.’s shares have slumped of late,thanks to a tongue-lashing from one analyst. But it doesn’t take away from the yearlong climb of the disk drive maker.
Western Digital shares dove 8.6% two weeks ago after an analyst raised concerns about the company’s ability to meet its profit forecast and higher-than-expected revenue projections in the current quarter.
Piper Jaffray & Co.’s Leslie P. Santiago cut his recommendation on Western Digital to “market perform” from “outperform.” The disk drive maker could face higher operating expenses as it attempts to keep pace with rival Seagate Technology, Santiago said.
Still, shares of the disk drive maker have outperformed the S & P; 500 and the Nasdaq composite indexes, steadily climbing more than 60% in the past 52 weeks.
Recently, Western Digital boosted its forecast, fueled by what it said was strong demand for its drives used in personal video recorders, notebook and business personal computers.
In an SEC filing, Western Digital said it expected fourth quarter revenue of $900 million to $915 million, up from its previous target of $875 million to $900 million, and earnings in line with previous forecasts.
The company’s quarter ends July 1. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial expect the company to earn $51 million for the period.
Printronix Down on Sales View
Irvine-based Printronix Inc. hasn’t been as fortunate as Western Digital in providing positive forecasts. Printronix warned earlier this month it might post a loss in the June quarter because of a slowdown in orders. The maker of industrial printers said it was seeing slower orders from Asian and European customers.
“If these trends continue, revenue for the first fiscal quarter of 2006 could be as much as 5% below revenue of $32.7 million reported in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2005,” the company said in a press release.
It also said it could report a loss in the period, which ended June 24.
The company had been posting sales gains in the past few quarters, in part on the strength of its printers that use radio frequency identification tags popular with retailers such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc.
Printronix recently said IBM Corp. signed a pact to use its RFID tagging technology in its line matrix and thermal bar code printers.
Clarification
A story that appeared in the Business Journal’s recent technology special report identified Irvine-based Zetera Corp. as a wireless technology company.
Zetera is a storage technology company. It licenses intellectual property and designs to computer storage makers.
