Wolfspeed shares slump as guidance disappoints

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In the third quarter, the semiconductor maker posted a loss of $0.13 per share, $0.02 better than the analyst estimate of a loss of $0.15 per share. In addition, revenue for the quarter came in at $228.7 million, above the consensus estimate of $220.29M.

However, the company sees its fourth-quarter loss per share between $0.17 and $0.23, worse than the consensus of a loss per share of $0.12. Meanwhile, Wolfspeed sees revenue from $212M to $232M in the quarter, below the consensus of $234.6M.

For fiscal 2024, Wolfspeed now targets revenue in a range of $1 billion to $1.1B versus the consensus of $1.2B.

Reacting to the report, Oppenheimer downgraded WOLF to Perform.

“We continue to see WOLF as a leader in SiC, believe it will successfully ramp planned capacity, and that EV designs will retain SiC components. However, we believe uncertainty around financing and ramp cadence will remain an overhang for several quarters, driving our downgrade to Perform,” the analysts wrote.

Morgan Stanley analysts maintained an Equal-Weight rating on the stock but cut the price target to $54 from $80 per share.

“Though we remain constructive on the overall SiC market and WOLF’s early leadership, we were surprised to learn of another setback in the company’s ramp of 200mm wafers. This cuts the near-term forecast considerably and resets the bar lower for FY24 and beyond,” said the analysts.

WOLF shares are currently trading below the $46 mark.