Texas Instruments sees strong first-quarter on electronics chip demand
(Reuters) - Texas Instruments Inc forecast current-quarter revenue above Wall Street estimates on Tuesday, expecting sales growth for a third straight quarter after two years of decline, buoyed by strong chip demand from the personal electronics market.
Given the broad range of chip products supplied by the company, investors consider its quarterly report card as a proxy for both the health of the industry and other sectors where semiconductors are key components.
Chip sales to personal electronics market jumped 39%, driven by consumers splurging on laptops and tablets to aid remote work and learning.
The company said it also saw strong demand from automotive and industrial markets, benefiting from a growing number of chip components in their products.
TI expects first-quarter revenue in a range of $3.79 billion to $4.11 billion, above analysts' expectations of $3.59 billion, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.
Net income rose to $1.69 billion, or $1.80 per share, in the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, from $1.07 billion, or $1.12 per share, a year earlier.
Total revenue rose to $4.08 billion from $3.35 billion a year earlier, above Wall Street estimates of $3.6 billion.
Shares of the company, which initially rose 2% in extended trade, were last down nearly 1%.
(Reporting by Munsif Vengattil in Bengaluru; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi)
