BTU breaks even in third-quarter 2010

BTU International's third-quarter financial results, ended October 3, revealed an ongoing strength in the company's electronics business, reporting an operating profit of US$0.8 million in the third quarter, driven by increased factory utilization.

Net sales were recorded at US$19 million, up 5.4% compared to US$18 million in the preceding quarter, and up 53.2% compared to US$12.4 million for the same quarter in 2009. The company broke even in the third quarter, compared to a net income of US$0.3 million, or a net income of US$0.03 per diluted share, in Q2'10, This compared to a net loss of US$2.6 million, or a loss of US$0.29 per diluted share, in the third quarter of 2009.

Net sales for the first nine months of 2010 were US$54.2 million, up 64.2% compared to US$33 million for the first nine months of the previous year. Net loss for the nine months ended October 3 was US$0.1 million, or a loss of US$0.01 per diluted share, compared to a net loss of US$10.7 million, or a loss of US$1.16 per diluted share, for the first nine months of 2009.

Paul J. van der Wansem, BTU chairman and CEO, said, "We have strong customer response and orders for our next generation metallization systems used in the manufacturing of solar cells and expect to build on the early successes of our in-line diffusion systems.

"We expect our fourth quarter revenues to be in the US$25 to US$27 million range, driven by the first shipments of in-line diffusion systems which are part of the order we announced at the end of June. Margins in the fourth quarter are expected to be somewhat lower due to the startup cost for the production of new solar equipment. We expect, however, that our results will show solid profitability in the fourth quarter."