Infineon closes 1Q19 with lower revenues but better earnings

The company points to seasonal factors as an explanation to the revenue declined by 4% to EUR 1,970 million in the first quarter of the 2019 fiscal year, compared to EUR 2,047 million in the fourth quarter of the preceding fiscal year. Revenue was down slightly in the Automotive (ATV) and Industrial Power Control (IPC) segments. Compared to the Group average, the decline was somewhat more pronounced in the Power Management & Multimarket (PMM) segment and noticeably more pronounced in the Digital Security Solutions (DSS) segment The Segment Result for the first quarter of the current fiscal year amounted to EUR 359 million, down from EUR 400 million one quarter earlier. The Segment Result Margin decreased from 19.5% to 18.2%. The company’s net income however improved from EUR 141 million in the previous quarter to EUR 254 million in the first quarter of the 2019 fiscal year. "So far we have been able to master the challenges of an increasingly difficult business environment well," says Dr. Reinhard Ploss, CEO of Infineon, in an update. "Despite market headwinds, we expect to be able to grow by about 9 percent in the 2019 fiscal year and gain further market share on the back of healthy structural growth drivers. Our long-term growth prospects remain intact. We will therefore continue to pursue core projects such as the construction of the 300-millimeter cleanroom in Villach, but moderately reduce investments in manufacturing equipment," Ploss continues.