Netlist Reports Fourth Quarter, Year-end Results

Year-over-Year Revenues for Fourth Quarter and Year Up 51 Percent and 105 Percent, Respectively; Gross Profit Increases 94 Percent and 230 Percent, Respectively

IRVINE, Calif., March 2, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Netlist, Inc. (Nasdaq: NLST) today reported financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended January 1, 2011.

Revenues for the fourth quarter ended January 1, 2011, were $10.1 million, up 51 percent from revenues of $6.7 million for the fourth quarter ended January 2, 2010. Gross profit for the fourth quarter ended January 1, 2011, was $3.3 million, or 32.6 percent of revenues, up 94 percent from a gross profit of $1.7 million, or 25.1 percent of revenues, for the fourth quarter ended January 2, 2010.

Net loss for the fourth quarter ended January 1, 2011, was $3.2 million, or $0.13 loss per share, compared to a net loss in the prior year period of $3.0 million, or $0.15 loss per share. These results include stock-based compensation expense in the fourth quarter ended January 1, 2011, of $0.3 million compared with $0.3 million in the prior year period.

Revenues for the year ended January 1, 2011, were $37.9 million, up 105 percent from revenues of $18.5 million for the year ended January 2, 2010. Gross profit for the year ended January 1, 2011, was $9.9 million, or 26.3 percent of revenues, up 230 percent from gross profit of $3.0 million, or 16.0 percent of revenues for the year ended January 2, 2010.

Net loss for the year ended January 1, 2011, was $15.1 million, or $0.64 loss per share, compared to a net loss in the prior year of $12.9 million, or $0.65 loss per share. The increased loss was primarily attributable to higher engineering, sales and marketing costs associated with technology development, and sampling and qualification efforts at various OEMs and end-users. These results include stock-based compensation expense for both years of $1.5 million.

As of January 1, 2011, cash, cash equivalents, and investments in marketable securities were $15.9 million, total assets were $32.7 million, working capital was $17.6 million, total debt was $1.7 million, and stockholders' equity was $21.8 million.

Chief Executive Officer C.K. Hong said, "We are very encouraged with the progress during the fourth quarter and the year and anticipate continued growth in 2011, especially as challenges in memory capacity and performance continue to emerge across industry segments."

Conference Call Information

As previously announced, Netlist is conducting a conference call today to be broadcast live over the Internet at 5:00 pm Eastern Time to discuss and review the financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended January 1, 2011. The dial-in number for the call is 1-877-941-2068. The live webcast and archived replay of the call can be accessed in the Investors section of Netlist's website at www.netlist.com.

About Netlist:

Netlist, Inc. designs and manufactures high-performance, logic-based memory subsystems for datacenter server and high-performance computing and communications markets. Netlist's flagship products include HyperCloud Memory, which breaks traditional memory barriers and NVvault, a flash memory-based subsystem that enables data retention weeks following a disaster. The memory technologies are developed for applications in which high-speed, high-capacity memory, enhanced functionality, small form factor, and heat dissipation are key requirements. These applications include tower-servers, rack-mounted servers, blade servers, high-performance computing clusters, engineering workstations, and telecommunication equipment. Founded in 2000, Netlist is headquartered in Irvine, California with manufacturing facilities in Suzhou, People's Republic of China. For more information, visit the company's website at www.netlist.com.

Safe Harbor Statement:

This news release contains forward-looking statements regarding future events and the future performance of Netlist, including statements regarding Netlist's anticipated growth and industry trends. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expected or projected. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, continuing development, qualification and volume production of NVvault™ and HyperCloud™; the rapidly-changing nature of technology; risks associated with intellectual property, including the costs and unpredictability of litigation over infringement of our intellectual property and the possibility of patents being reexamined by the United States Patent and Trademark Office; volatility in the pricing of DRAM ICs and NAND; changes in and uncertainty of customer acceptance of, and demand for, our existing products and products under development, including uncertainty of and/or delays in product orders and product qualifications; delays in the Company's and its customers' product releases and development; introductions of new products by competitors; changes in end-user demand for technology solutions; the Company's ability to attract and retain skilled personnel; the Company's reliance on suppliers of critical components and vendors in the supply chain; fluctuations in the market price of critical components; evolving industry standards; and the political and regulatory environment in the People's Republic of China. Other risks and uncertainties are described in the Company's quarterly report on Form 10-Q filed on November 16, 2010, and subsequent filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission made by the Company from time to time. Except as required by law, Netlist undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

TABLES FOLLOW

Netlist, Inc.

Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations

(in thousands, except per share amounts)




Three Months Ended


Year Ended




January 1,


January 2,


January 1,


January 2,




2011


2010


2011


2010












Net sales


$ 10,096


$ 6,698


$ 37,855


$ 18,479


Cost of sales(1)


6,807


5,015


27,910


15,522


Gross profit


3,289


1,683


9,945


2,957


Operating expenses:










Research and development(1)


3,606


2,464


14,762


8,083


Selling, general and administrative(1)


2,878


2,133


11,041


8,303


Total operating expenses


6,484


4,597


25,803


16,386


Operating loss


(3,195)


(2,914)


(15,858)


(13,429)


Other income (expense):










Interest (expense) income, net


(43)


4


(42)


79


Other (expense) income, net


-


(109)


71


25


Total other income (expense), net


(43)


(105)


29


104


Loss before tax benefit


(3,238)


(3,019)


(15,829)


(13,325)


Income tax benefit


(1)


(3)


(714)


(412)


Net loss


$ (3,237)


$ (3,016)


$ (15,115)


$ (12,913)


Net loss per common share:










Basic and diluted


$ (0.13)


$ (0.15)


$ (0.64)


$ (0.65)


Weighted-average common shares outstanding:










Basic and diluted


25,188


19,945


23,779


19,876












(1) Amounts include stock-based compensation expense as follows:



















Cost of sales


$ 9


$ 11


$ 42


$ 224


Research and development


60


39


357


301


Selling, general and administrative


192


207


1,083


960















Netlist, Inc.

Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets

(in thousands)




January 1,


January 2,




2011


2010








ASSETS






Current assets:






Cash and cash equivalents


$ 14,210


$ 9,942


Investments in marketable securities


824


3,949


Accounts receivable, net


6,451


4,273


Inventories


4,509


2,232


Prepaid expenses and other current assets


1,396


854


Total current assets


27,390


21,250








Property and equipment, net


4,077


4,779


Long-term investments in marketable securities


890


941


Other assets


337


221


Total assets


$ 32,694


$ 27,191








LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY






Current liabilities:






Accounts payable


$ 6,256


$ 4,057


Accrued payroll and related liabilities


1,762


1,706


Accrued expenses and other current liabilities


454


1,231


Accrued engineering charges


638


661


Current portion of long-term debt


674


108


Current portion of deferred gain on sale and leaseback transaction


-


108


Total current liabilities


9,784


7,871


Long-term debt, net of current portion


1,063


51


Total liabilities


10,847


7,922








Commitments and contingencies












Stockholders' equity:






Common stock


25


20


Additional paid-in capital


89,074


71,332


Accumulated deficit


(67,141)


(52,026)


Accumulated other comprehensive loss


(111)


(57)


Total stockholders' equity


21,847


19,269


Total liabilities and stockholders' equity


$ 32,694


$ 27,191











Contact:

Allen & Caron Inc

Gail M. Sasaki



Jill Bertotti (investors)

Chief Financial Officer



jill@allencaron.com

Netlist, Inc.



Len Hall (media)

(949) 435-0025



len@allencaron.com




(949) 474-4300








SOURCE Netlist, Inc.

Mar 02, 2011

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