BE Semiconductor Industries Reports First Quarter Results; Book-to-bill ratio for first quarter 1997 exceeds one

Business Wire, May 12, 1997

ZEVENAAR, The Netherlands--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 12, 1997--BE Semiconductor Industries N.V. (Nasdaq: BESIF; Amsterdam Stock Exchange: BESI; Frankfurt Stock Exchange: BSI), a leading manufacturer of assembly equipment for the semiconductor industry, today announced its financial results for the first quarter of 1997.

Net sales for the first quarter of 1997 were NLG 104.4 million (US$ 55.4 million), which, as expected, represented a decline compared to net sales in the first quarter of 1996 of NLG 127.0 million (US$ 67.3 million). The Company's net income in the first quarter of 1997 declined to NLG 4.1 million (US$ 2.2 million) compared to NLG 12.4 million (US$ 6.6 million) for the 1996 period. Earnings per share were NLG 0.15 (US$ 0.08) for the first quarter of 1997, compared to NLG 0.47 (US$ 0.25) per share in the year-ago quarter.

Commenting on these results, Richard Blickman, President and Chief Executive Officer, said, "Over the first quarter of 1997, we experienced a slight improvement in semiconductor market conditions. First quarter net sales were impacted by the slowdown in the semiconductor industry, reflecting a net sales decline in all product lines, except trim and form systems, which increased by 20%. Our overall first quarter performance was in line with expectations and we are encouraged by renewed strong order activity."

The Company noted that the backlog for the first quarter of 1997 showed improvement, increasing to NLG 149.4 million from NLG 140.0 million at December 31, 1996 after three quarters of decline. The Company reported an increase in Systems backlog of 6% to NLG 134.0 million at March 31, 1997, compared to NLG 126.3 million at December 31, 1996.

"Market conditions have slightly improved, as we had anticipated at the time of our year-end 1996 earnings release," continued Mr. Blickman. "We can report a book-to-bill ratio for the first quarter of 1997 above one, compared to 0.66 for the fourth quarter of 1996. In addition, order rates further accelerated during the month of April, although overall order visibility remains moderate. Given our manufacturing lead time, the increase in orders in the first quarter is not expected to impact second quarter results."

Gross profit for the first quarter of 1997 was NLG 35.0 million (US$ 18.6 million), compared to NLG 45.7 million (US$ 24.2 million) in the same period of 1996. As a percentage of net sales, gross profit was 33.5% for the first quarter of 1997, compared to 35.9% in the prior year period.

Research and development expenses for the first quarter increased significantly to NLG 6.7 million, compared to NLG 4.2 million in the prior year period. The increase was attributed to investments in the Company's new generation molding system and new generation trim and form system. Development programs for both systems are on track as scheduled for introduction in 1997.

For the first quarter of 1997, selling, general and administrative expenses were NLG 20.3 million, compared to NLG 20.2 million in the year-ago period. Selling, general and administrative expenses were higher than anticipated in the first quarter of 1997 as a result of increased service and warranty costs related to new systems installed in 1996 and increased sales and marketing efforts in the current competitive market environment. On a sequential basis, selling, general and administrative expenses in the first quarter decreased 14% from NLG 23.5 million in the fourth quarter of 1996.

At March 31, 1997, cash totaled NLG 59.3 million and exceeded total debt of NLG 21.2 million, including NLG 17.0 million of long-term debt. Shareholders' equity stood at NLG 276.5 million.

This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Among the important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements are the cyclicality of the semiconductor equipment industry, risks related to customer concentration, delays and cancellations of product orders, competitive pressures, general economic conditions and the risk factors detailed in the Company's periodic reports and registration statements filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

BE Semiconductor Industries N.V. designs, develops, manufactures, markets and services molding, trim and form and selective plating and tin-lead plating systems for the semiconductor industry's `back-end' assembly operations and provides leadframes and connector plating services to customers. The Company's customers consist primarily of leading US, European, Asian, Korean and Japanese semiconductor manufacturers and subcontractors. -0-

                   BE Semiconductor Industries N.V.
                Consolidated Statements of Operations
              (NLG in thousands, except per share data)

                                           Three           Three
                                          Months          Months
                                           Ended           Ended
                                         March 31,       March 31,
                                            1996            1997
                                         (unaudited)    (unaudited)


Net sale                               NLG 127,036    NLG 104,386
Cost of sales                               81,376         69,413
Gross profit on sales                       45,660         34,973

Selling, general and
administrative expenses                     20,216         20,278
Research and development expenses            4,165          6,677
Amortization of intangible assets            1,877          1,877

Total operating expenses                    26,258         28,832

Operating income                            19,402          6,141
Interest expense, net                          649            557
Equity in net earnings
of affiliated company                          147            157
Income before income taxes                  18,900          5,741
Income taxes                                 6,499          1,665

Net income                                  12,401          4,076

Net income per share(1)                  NLG  0.47      NLG  0.15

Number of shares used in
calculating net income per share        26,226,744     26,418,332


1. Net income per share is calculated by dividing net income by the
total number of outstanding ordinary shares and ordinary share
equivalents, calculated using the treasury stock method.

The financial information of these interim periods has been prepared
in accordance with US GAAP.


                   BE Semiconductor Industries N.V.
                      Consolidated Balance Sheets
                         (NLG in thousands)

                                       December 31,      March 31,
                                          1996             1997
                                                       (unaudited)
ASSETS
Cash                               NLG    45,704     NLG   59,314
Accounts receivables, net                 92,631           84,962
Inventories, net                          76,464           76,732
Other current assets                      26,107           21,895
Total current assets                     240,906          242,903

Property, plant and equipment, net        88,393           93,614
Intangible assets, net                    87,896           86,019
Financial fixed assets                     2,023            2,225
Total assets                             419,218          424,761


LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY

Notes payable to banks                     1,035              469
Current portion of long-term debt          3,211            3,713
Accounts payable                          50,087           50,525
Other current liabilities                 55,198           54,053
Total current liabilities                109,531          108,760

Long-term debt                             9,854            8,435
Subordinated debt                          9,285            8,570
Deferred income tax liability             22,918           22,505

Total shareholders' equity               267,630          276,491

Total liabilities and
shareholders' equity             NLG     419,218   NLG    424,761