Texas Instruments announced third-quarter revenue of USD 3.47 billion, down 7 percent from a year earlier and little changed from the second quarter. Operating profit declined 34 percent year-on-year to USD 34 million. The biggest drop was in the Wireless segment, where revenues fell 24 percent to USD 580 million and operating profit was down 57 percent to USD 78 million. The company's net income fell 30 percent from a year ago to USD 601 million, and earnings per share dropped 28 percent to 51 cents. EPS included 9 cents in charges associated with the company's acquisition of National Semiconductor, completed during the quarter. EPS came in below the company's earlier outlook of 56-60 cents. The company also booked extra costs for low factory utilisation after a cut in production, but these were partly offset by insurance claims received for the earthquake in Japan. TI said revenue for the third quarter was higher than expected, although overall the quarter was below the seasonal average. Texas Instruments expects a similar pattern in the fourth quarter as the economic uncertainty continues to weigh on demand in almost every major market segment in which it operates. Orders in Q3 were down 10 percent from the year-ago quarter and down 15 percent from the prior quarter to USD 3.07 billion. For the fourth quarter, the company forecast revenue USD 3.26-3.54 billion and EPS of USD 0.28-0.36, including around 15 cents in acquisition-related costs.
