Micronic reports profit for first nine months 2004 - First Sigma7300 system selected

Micronic reports profit for first nine months 2004 - First Sigma7300 system selected Taby, Sweden, October 21, 2004 - Micronic Laser Systems AB (Stockholm Stock Exchange's "Attract 40 list": MICR) today presented the Group's Interim Report for January 1 - September 30, 2004. * Order intake during the first nine months of 2004 was SEK 739 (589) million, of which the third quarter order intake was SEK 350 (171) million. * Net sales during the first nine months reached SEK 417 (238) million, of which SEK 176 (118) million relates to the third quarter. * Result after financial items for the first nine months was SEK 28 (-101) million, of which SEK 53 (-4) million relates to the third quarter. * Net result for the reporting period was SEK 18 (-73) million, which is equivalent to SEK 0.47 (-2.96) per share. The third quarter net result amounted to SEK 37 (-3) million, equivalent to SEK 0.95 (-0.08) per share. * Closing order book was SEK 1,079 (573) million. "Micronic continued to perform well in every respect during the third quarter. Order intake remained strong and also includes orders from the semiconductor market. Net sales are up, third quarter gross margin exceeded 60 percent, development expenditures have decreased and the company has shown a profit not only for the quarter but also for the entire reporting period," said Sven Lofquist, president and CEO of Micronic Laser Systems AB. "We foresee continued robust order intake in the display market throughout 2004, but then anticipate a slight slowdown. For the full year 2004 we stand by our expectation, implying powerful sales growth during the final quarter of the year," Lofquist said. "Direct development of Sigma7300 has now been completed and our development expenses are decreasing as a result. Technical evaluation of the installed system has been concluded, which means that the system is selected by the customer and will be invoiced during the fourth quarter," Lofquist said. "In the third quarter we also delivered our 100th system, which was shipped to Japan. This, together with our 10th anniversary in the Japanese market, was commemorated with a well-attended seminar in Japan. All in all, the company is developing fully in line with our expectations. We are pleased that the Sigma technology is now established in the market and we look forward to the coming quarters with confidence," Lofquist concluded. Company contact: Sven Lofquist President & CEO +46 8 638 52 00 sven.lofquist@micronic.se Agency contact: Luz Rodriguez The Loomis Group, Inc. +33 1 58 18 59 30 rodriguezl@loomisgroup.com About Micronic Laser Systems AB Micronic Laser Systems is a Swedish high-tech company engaged in the development, manufacture and marketing of a series of extremely accurate laser pattern generators for the production of photomasks. The technology involved is known as microlithography. Micronic´s systems are used by the world´s leading electronics companies in the manufacture of television and computer displays, semiconductor circuits and semiconductor packaging components. Micronic is located in Taby, north of Stockholm and at present has subsidiaries in the United States, Japan and in Taiwan. Micronic maintains a web site at: http://www.micronic.se ------------------------------------------------------------ This information was brought to you by Waymaker http://www.waymaker.net The following files are available for download: http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2004/10/21/20041021BIT20160/wkr0010.pdf Complete document