[February 04, 2013]

Power Integrations Reports Fourth-Quarter and Full-Year 2012 Financial Results

Power Integrations (Nasdaq: POWI) today announced financial results for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2012. Net revenues for the quarter were $79.2 million, up one percent from the prior quarter and up 19 percent compared with the fourth quarter of 2011. GAAP net income for the quarter was $9.7 million or $0.33 per diluted share. This compares to a net loss in the prior quarter of $1.54 per share, the result of charges stemming from the closure of SemiSouth Laboratories. Net income in the year-ago quarter was $0.22 per diluted share. GAAP gross margin for the fourth quarter was 49.8 percent; operating margin was 12.0 percent.

In addition to its GAAP results, the company provided non-GAAP financial measures that exclude stock-based compensation expenses, certain acquisition-related expenses, charges related to SemiSouth and the company's tax-audit settlement, non-cash interest income, and the tax effects of these items. Non-GAAP net income for the quarter was $13.7 million or $0.47 per diluted share, compared with $0.49 per diluted share in the prior quarter and $0.29 per diluted share in the fourth quarter of 2011. Non-GAAP gross margin for the fourth quarter was 52.8 percent; non-GAAP operating margin was 20.6 percent.

Commented Balu Balakrishnan, president and CEO of Power Integrations: "Bookings improved moderately over the course of the fourth quarter, resulting in higher-than-expected quarterly revenues of $79.2 million. Our non-GAAP gross margin is up five percentage points from a year ago, contributing to a 62-percent increase in our non-GAAP earnings per share in the fourth quarter.

"While uncertain global economic conditions make it difficult to forecast demand for the year ahead, we believe we are well positioned competitively and strategically, and our balance sheet remains sound. Accordingly, we are continuing to return cash to stockholders through a mix of share repurchases and dividends. We utilized more than $20 million for repurchases in the fourth quarter, and our board of directors has increased our quarterly dividend by 60 percent for the upcoming year, to eight cents per share."

For the full year 2012, net revenues were $305.4 million, an increase of two percent compared with 2011. The company reported a full-year GAAP net loss of $34.4 million or $1.20 per share, reflecting the charges related to SemiSouth as well as a one-time tax payment in the second quarter related to the settlement of the company's tax audit; this loss compares to GAAP net income of $34.3 million or $1.14 per diluted share in 2011. Non-GAAP net income for 2012 was $53.6 million or $1.80 per diluted share compared with $43.2 million or $1.44 per diluted share in 2011.

Additional Highlights

• During the quarter the company repurchased 675,500 shares for $20.5 million. The company had $29.5 million remaining on its repurchase authorization at quarter-end.
• Power Integrations paid a dividend of $0.05 per share on December 31, 2012. The company's board of directors has declared dividends of $0.08 per share for each of the four quarters of 2013, the first of which is to be paid on March 29, 2013 to stockholders of record as of February 28.
• In December Power Integrations announced a favorable outcome in a patent lawsuit filed against it in China by Fairchild Semiconductor. The Chinese court ruled that Power Integrations does not infringe any of the patents asserted by Fairchild in the case. The ruling follows three previous findings of infringement against Fairchild in cases brought by Power Integrations in the U.S.
• Power Integrations received 25 U.S. patents and 10 non-U.S. patents during the quarter and had a total of 534 U.S. patents and 390 non-U.S. patents as of December 31, 2012.

Financial Outlook

The company issued the following forecast for the first quarter of 2013:

• First-quarter revenues are expected to be between $76 million and $82 million.
• Non-GAAP gross margin is expected to be between 52 and 52.5 percent. (Excludes from cost of revenues $0.6 million of amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets and $0.3 million of stock-based compensation.) GAAP gross margin is expected to be between 51 and 51.5 percent.
• Non-GAAP operating expenses are expected to be $26 million, plus or minus $0.5 million. (Excludes from GAAP operating expenses approximately $3 million of stock-based compensation expenses and $1 million of amortization expense for acquisition-related intangible assets.) GAAP operating expenses are expected to be $30 million, plus or minus $0.5 million.
• The non-GAAP effective tax rate is expected to be in a range of five to six percent; the GAAP tax rate is expected to be negative due to the retroactive renewal of the federal R&D tax credit.

Conference Call Today at 1:45 p.m. Pacific Time

Power Integrations management will hold a conference call today at 1:45 p.m. Pacific time. Members of the investment community can join the call by dialing 1-877-303-9795 from within the United States or 1-631-291-4581 from outside the U.S. The call will be available via a live and archived webcast on the investor section of the company's website, http://investors.powerint.com.

About Power Integrations

Power Integrations, Inc., is a Silicon Valley-based supplier of high-performance electronic components used in high-voltage power-conversion systems. The company's integrated circuits and diodes enable compact, energy-efficient AC-DC power supplies for a vast range of electronic products including mobile devices, TVs, PCs, appliances, smart utility meters and LED lights. CONCEPT IGBT drivers enhance the efficiency, reliability and cost of high-power applications such as industrial motor drives, solar and wind energy systems, electric vehicles and high-voltage DC transmission. Since its introduction in 1998, Power Integrations' EcoSmart^® energy-efficiency technology has prevented billions of dollars' worth of energy waste and millions of tons of carbon emissions. Reflecting the environmental benefits of the company's products, Power Integrations' stock is included in the NASDAQ^® Clean Edge^® Green Energy Index, The Cleantech Index^®, and the Ardour Global Index^SM. For more information, including design-support tools and resources, please visit www.powerint.com; visit Power Integrations' Green Room for a comprehensive guide to energy-efficiency standards around the world.

Note Regarding Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

In addition to the company's consolidated financial statements, which are presented according to GAAP, the company provides certain non-GAAP financial information that excludes stock-based compensation expenses recorded under Accounting Standard Codification 718-10, acquisition-related expenses, amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets and the fair-value write-up of acquired inventory, charges associated with SemiSouth, non-cash interest income, the tax effects of the above items, and the one-time tax charge described above. The company uses these non-GAAP measures in its own financial and operational decision-making processes and, with respect to one measure, in setting performance targets for employee-compensation purposes. Further, the company believes that these non-GAAP measures offer an important analytical tool to help investors understand the company's core operating results and trends, and to facilitate comparability with the operating results of other companies that provide similar non-GAAP measures. These non-GAAP measures have certain limitations as analytical tools and are not meant to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for GAAP financial information. For example, stock-based compensation is an important component of the company's compensation mix, and will continue to result in significant expenses in the company's GAAP results for the foreseeable future, but is not reflected in the non-GAAP measures. Also, other companies, including companies in Power Integrations' industry, may calculate non-GAAP financial measures differently, limiting their usefulness as comparative measures.

Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

The statements in this press release under the caption "Financial Outlook" relating to the company's projected first-quarter financial performance are forward-looking statements reflecting management's current expectations and beliefs. These forward-looking statements are based on current information that is, by its nature, subject to rapid and even abrupt changes. Due to risks and uncertainties associated with the company's business, actual results could differ materially from those projected or implied by these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: changes in global macroeconomic conditions, which may impact the level of demand for the company's products; potential changes and shifts in customer demand away from end products that utilize the company's integrated circuits to end products that do not incorporate the company's products; the effects of competition, which may cause the company to decrease its selling prices for its products; the outcome and cost of patent litigation, which may affect sales of the company's products or could result in higher expenses and charges than currently expected; unforeseen costs and expenses; unfavorable fluctuations in component costs resulting from changes in commodity prices and/or the exchange rate between the U.S. dollar and the Japanese yen; and the challenges inherent in integrating and forecasting the performance of acquired businesses. In addition, new product introductions and design wins are subject to the risks and uncertainties that typically accompany development and delivery of complex technologies to the marketplace, including product development delays and defects and market acceptance of the new products. These and other risk factors that may cause actual results to differ are more fully explained under the caption "Risk Factors" in the company's most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on October 31, 2012. The company is under no obligation (and expressly disclaims any obligation) to update or alter its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as otherwise required by the rules and regulations of the SEC.

Power Integrations, EcoSmart and the Power Integrations logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Power Integrations, Inc. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.

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