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Altera Announces 2004 Results; Sales up 23%; Net Income up 77%.


SAN JOSE San Jose, city, United States
San Jose (sănəzā`, săn hōzā`), city (1990 pop. 782,248), seat of Santa Clara co., W central Calif.; founded 1777, inc. 1850.
, Calif. -- Altera Altera Corporation (NASDAQ: ALTR) is a leading manufacturer of programmable logic devices. It is a member of the NASDAQ-100 group of technology stocks and the S&P 500.  Corporation (Nasdaq:ALTR) today announced 2004 sales of $1.02 billion, up 23%, compared to $827.2 million in 2003. New product sales increased 186%. Net income for 2004 was $275.1 million, $0.72 per diluted di·lute  
tr.v. di·lut·ed, di·lut·ing, di·lutes
1. To make thinner or less concentrated by adding a liquid such as water.

2. To lessen the force, strength, purity, or brilliance of, especially by admixture.
 share, versus net income of $155.1 million, $0.40 per diluted share in 2003.

Fourth quarter sales were $239.9 million, up 10% from the fourth quarter of 2003 and down 9% from the third quarter of 2004, versus the company's prior guidance for sales reductions of 9% to 12%. Fourth quarter net income was $58.0 million, $0.15 per diluted share, up 28%, compared to net income of $45.1 million, $0.12 per diluted share, in the fourth quarter of 2003. Gross profit margin Gross profit margin

Gross profit divided by sales, which is equal to each sales dollar left over after paying for the cost of goods sold.


gross profit margin

A measure calculated by dividing gross profit by net sales.
 was 69.8% for the fourth quarter of 2004 versus 67.5% for the fourth quarter of 2003.

Altera's tax rate for 2004 was 16.8% and included a $17.1 million or a 5.2 percentage point tax rate benefit primarily related to a tax settlement with Hong n. 1. A mercantile establishment or factory for foreign trade in China, as formerly at Canton; a succession of offices connected by a common passage and used for business or storage.  Kong's Inland Revenue Department Inland Revenue Department may refer to one of the following.
  • Inland Revenue Department (Hong Kong)
  • Inland Revenue Department (New Zealand)
  • Inland Revenue former department of the British Government
 recorded in the third quarter. The effective tax rate for the year was lowered in the fourth quarter by 1 percentage point, resulting in a favorable fa·vor·a·ble  
adj.
1. Advantageous; helpful: favorable winds.

2. Encouraging; propitious: a favorable diagnosis.

3.
 fourth quarter adjustment of $2.6 million (3.7 percentage points) and an effective tax rate for the fourth quarter of 18.3%.

Altera repurchased 8.3 million shares of its common stock during 2004 at a cost of $176.3 million, with 606,600 shares repurchased during the fourth quarter at a cost of $12.6 million. Altera ended the quarter with $1.2 billion in cash and short-term Short-term

Any investments with a maturity of one year or less.


short-term

1. Of or relating to a gain or loss on the value of an asset that has been held less than a specified period of time.
 investments.

"The year's revenue growth, fueled by great new product traction Traction Definition

Traction is the use of a pulling force to treat muscle and skeleton disorders.
Purpose

Traction is usually applied to the arms and legs, the neck, the backbone, or the pelvis.
 and FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) A type of gate array that is programmed in the field rather than in a semiconductor fab. Containing up to hundreds of thousands of gates, there are a variety of FPGA architectures on the market.  market share gains, demonstrates that our R&D investments are paying off. The last half of the year was very challenging, and even as business moderated, we maintained strong gross margins and kept inventories under control," said John Daane, president and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. . "In 2004 we announced another generation of products with a distinct performance edge. We introduced our Nios(R) II processor, a higher performance and more flexible version of our industry-leading Nios soft-core processor. Our new programmable devices, Stratix(R) II and Cyclone cyclone, atmospheric pressure distribution in which there is a low central pressure relative to the surrounding pressure. The resulting pressure gradient, combined with the Coriolis effect, causes air to circulate about the core of lowest pressure in a (TM) II FPGAs and MAX(R) II CPLDs, all have substantial competitive performance advantages and the potential for rapid new product growth in 2005 and beyond. Across all our served markets we are uncovering new applications for programmable logic See PLD.  as we continue to pursue the substantial growth opportunities available to us."

Altera continued to advance its leadership position in system-on-a-programmable-chip (SOPC SOPC System on a Programmable Chip
SOPC Special Operations Preparation Course
SOPC Second-Order Power Control
SOPC Shuttle Operations and Planning Center
SOPC 1-Stearoyl-2-Oleoyl-Sn-Glycero-3-Phosphatidylcholine
SOPC Shaastra Online Programming Contest
) solutions.

--As revealed in recent benchmarking
For the geolocating game, see benchmarking (geolocating). For other uses of the term 'benchmark' see benchmark.


Benchmarking (also "best practice benchmarking" or "process benchmarking") is a process used in management and particularly strategic
 studies, Altera FPGA and CPLD (Complex PLD) A programmable logic device that is made up of several simple PLDs (SPLDs) with a programmable switching matrix in between the logic blocks. CPLDs typically use EEPROM, flash memory or SRAM to hold the logic design interconnections. See PLD and SPLD.  performance leads the industry. Altera's performance advantage results from the combined power of Altera's innovative device architecture and Quartus Quartus (Latin "fourth") was a Corinthian Christian who sent messages to friends in Rome through Paul of Tarsus. He is mentioned in Rom. 16:23.

This entry incorporates text from the public domain Easton's Bible Dictionary, originally published in 1897.
(R) II design software. Using Quartus II Quartus II is a software tool produced by Altera for analysis and synthesis of HDL designs.

Quartus II enables the developer to compile their designs, perform timing analysis, examine RTL diagrams and configure the target device with the programmer.
 version 4.2 software, Altera's 90-nm Stratix II FPGAs deliver on average 39% higher performance than Virtex-4 devices, 90-nm Cyclone II FPGAs deliver 60% better performance than Spartan-3 devices, and MAX II CPLDs deliver 50% better performance than CoolRunner-II devices. Details on Altera's performance leadership, the results of our third-party-endorsed benchmarking methodology, and a web-based net seminar comparing Stratix II and Virtex-4 performance can be found at www.altera.com/alterazone.

--In addition to having the industry's best performance, Altera's Stratix II family features the highest density FPGAs shipping today. With the arrival of the Stratix II EP2S180, which contains nearly 180,000 equivalent logic elements, Altera's largest FPGA has 82% more logic elements than any available competing alternative. The entire Stratix II family is now shipping and readily available, with three devices already fully production qualified. The remainder of the Stratix II family will move to production status in the first half of 2005. The combination of high density, superior performance, and availability makes Altera the best programmable logic choice for the complex high-performance Adj. 1. high-performance - modified to give superior performance; "a high-performance car"
superior - of high or superior quality or performance; "superior wisdom derived from experience"; "superior math students"
 designs traditionally served by ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) Pronounced "a-sick." A chip that is custom designed for a specific application rather than a general-purpose chip such as a microprocessor.  solutions.

--The HardCopy (jargon) hardcopy - A paper printout of data displayed on a screen.

Contrast softcopy.
(R) II family, Altera's unique 90-nm structured ASIC A type of application specific IC (ASIC) chip that contains blocks of logic, called "tiles" or "modules," that have their transistors already wired together forming gates along with some combination of multiplexors, flip/flops, look up tables and the like.  solution, has been announced, taking the HardCopy value proposition to new levels. HardCopy II devices deliver the flexibility of an FPGA and the performance of a standard-cell ASIC. Combining a Stratix II-based FPGA front-end front-end
adj.
1. Of or relating to the initial phase of a project: a front-end investment.

2. Of or relating to the forward parts of a vehicle: a front-end alignment.
 design methodology with cost as low as $15 for 1 million ASIC gates, the HardCopy II family gives customers a time-to-market advantage and economics unequaled by other structured ASICs or standard-cell ASICs. The HardCopy II family offers core logic performance as much as 100% faster and power consumption as much as 50% lower than a Stratix II FPGA prototype Prototype

A first or original model of hardware or software. Prototyping involves the production of functionally useful and trustworthy systems through experimentation with evolving systems.
. With this performance, and densities up to 2.2 million ASIC gates, the HardCopy II family allows Altera to compete for a new range of designs untouchable untouchable

Former classification of various low-status persons and those outside the Hindu caste system in Indian society. The term Dalit is now used for such people (in preference to Mohandas K.
 by other PLD (Programmable Logic Device) Refers to a variety of logic chips that are programmable at the customer's site, the customer being the vendor of the finished chip, not the end user.  competitors. HardCopy II-based designs are an appealing solution across all of Altera's markets for higher-density applications that previously required an ASIC or ASSP (Application Specific Standard Part) An ASIC chip that is designed as a generic device for a particular market. Whereas an ASIC is typically used only by its creator, ASSPs are used by many different companies in the design of their products. See ASIC.  implementation for high-volume production.

--Altera has now shipped, ahead of schedule, the first member of the 90-nm Cyclone II family, the EP2C35. The Cyclone II family, designed for high-volume cost-sensitive applications, offers lower costs, higher densities, and more features than the first generation Cyclone family. The Cyclone II device architecture is optimized for 90-nm and is manufactured on TSMC's proven low-k In semiconductor manufacturing, a Low-κ dielectric is a material with a small dielectric constant relative to silicon dioxide. Although the proper symbol for the dielectric constant is the Greek letter κ (kappa), in conversation such materials are referred to as being  dielectric dielectric (dī'ĭlĕk`trĭk), material that does not conduct electricity readily, i.e., an insulator (see insulation). A good dielectric should also have other properties: It must resist breakdown under high voltages; it should not  process technology using 300mm wafers wafers

compressed roughage in flat plates useful for feeding to animals in transit.
. The Cyclone II family, which builds on the low-cost FPGA leadership Altera established with the original Cyclone family, delivers a low-risk and low-cost solution that makes it a highly attractive alternative to low- and medium-density ASICs.

--Customers are increasingly recognizing Altera's technology leadership, quality, and reliability, reflecting the attention Altera places not just on innovation but on overall customer relationships. Altera has recently received Cisco Systems' "Excellence in Delivery and Flexibility Award" for consistently meeting or exceeding its supplier commitments. In addition Altera was selected by Samsung Electronics Samsung Electronics (SEC, Hangul:삼성전자; KSE: 005930, KSE: 005935, LSE: SMSN, LSE: SMSD) is a South Korean multinational corporation and the world's largest and leading electronics and information technology company.  as "Most Valued Partner of the Year." Candidates for this award are evaluated on the basis of total cost of ownership, quality metrics metrics Managed care A popular term for standards by which the quality of a product, service, or outcome of a particular form of Pt management is evaluated. See TQM. , ability to meet scheduled shipments, and overall technical performance.

Conference Call and Quarterly Update:

A conference call will be held today at 1:45 p.m. Pacific Time to discuss the quarter's results and management's outlook for the first quarter of 2005. The web cast and subsequent replay will be available in the investor relations Investor relations

The process by which the corporation communicates with its investors.
 section of the company's web site at http://www.altera.com. A telephonic replay of the call may be accessed later in the day by calling (719) 457-0820 and referencing confirmation code 258712. The telephonic replay will be available for two weeks following the live call.

Altera's first quarter business update will be issued in a press release available after the market close on March 10.

Forward-Looking Statements forward-looking statement

A projected financial statement based on management expectations. A forward-looking statement involves risks with regard to the accuracy of assumptions underlying the projections.


Statements in this press release that are not historical are "forward-looking statements," as the term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA) implemented several significant substantive changes affecting certain cases brought under the federal securities laws, including changes related to pleading, discovery, liability, class representation and awards fees and  of 1995. Forward-looking statements are generally written in the future tense future tense
n.
A verb tense expressing future time.

Noun 1. future tense - a verb tense that expresses actions or states in the future
future
 and/or and/or  
conj.
Used to indicate that either or both of the items connected by it are involved.

Usage Note: And/or is widely used in legal and business writing.
 preceded by words such as "will", "expects", or words that imply or predict a future state. Investors are cautioned that all forward-looking statements in this release involve risks and uncertainty that can cause actual results to differ from those currently anticipated, due to a number of factors, including without limitation, customer business environment, market acceptance of the company's products, the rate of growth of the company's new products and in particular the Stratix and Cyclone device families, the rate at which our customers' new platforms enter production, the rollout of the company's Stratix II, Cyclone II, MAX II, and HardCopy II families, as well as changing economic conditions, and other risk factors discussed in documents filed by the company with the Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time. Copies of Altera's SEC filings are posted on the company's web site and are available from the company without charge. Forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this release, and, except as required by law, the company does not undertake an obligation to update its forward-looking statements to reflect future events or circumstances CIRCUMSTANCES, evidence. The particulars which accompany a fact.
     2. The facts proved are either possible or impossible, ordinary and probable, or extraordinary and improbable, recent or ancient; they may have happened near us, or afar off; they are public or
.

About Altera

Altera Corporation (Nasdaq:ALTR) is the world's pioneer of system-on-a-programmable-chip (SOPC) solutions. Combining programmable logic technology with software tools, intellectual property, and technical services, Altera provides high-value programmable solutions to approximately ap·prox·i·mate  
adj.
1. Almost exact or correct: the approximate time of the accident.

2.
 14,000 customers worldwide. More information is available at http://www.altera.com.

Altera, The Programmable Solutions Company, the stylized styl·ize  
tr.v. styl·ized, styl·iz·ing, styl·iz·es
1. To restrict or make conform to a particular style.

2. To represent conventionally; conventionalize.
 Altera logo, specific device designations and all other words that are identified as trademarks and/or service marks are, unless noted otherwise, the trademarks and service marks of Altera Corporation in the U.S. and other countries. All other product or service names are the property of their respective holder.
ALTERA CORPORATION
              CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME
            (In thousands, except per share data and note)
                              (Unaudited)

                         THREE MONTHS ENDED            YEAR ENDED
                   ----------------------------- ---------------------
                    Dec. 31    Oct. 1    Jan. 2     Dec. 31    Jan. 2
                       2004      2004      2004        2004      2004
                   --------- --------- --------- ----------- ---------

Net sales          $239,885  $264,599  $217,426  $1,016,364  $827,207

Costs and expenses:
Cost of sales        72,335    80,966    70,613     310,168   265,873
Research and
 development         46,946    48,259    41,274     180,525   178,543
Selling, general,
 and administrative  54,578    53,577    47,869     210,745   184,609
                   --------- --------- --------- ----------- ---------
Total costs and
 expenses           173,859   182,802   159,756     701,438   629,025
                   --------- --------- --------- ----------- ---------

Income from
 operations          66,026    81,797    57,670     314,926   198,182
Interest and other
 income, net          4,957     3,892     4,167      15,857    14,319
                   --------- --------- --------- ----------- ---------

Income before
 income taxes        70,983    85,689    61,837     330,783   212,501
Provision for
 income taxes       (13,019)   (2,608)  (16,695)    (55,672)  (57,376)
                   --------- --------- --------- ----------- ---------

Net income          $57,964   $83,081   $45,142    $275,111  $155,125
                   ========= ========= ========= =========== =========

Income per share:
   Basic              $0.16     $0.22     $0.12       $0.74     $0.41
                   ========= ========= ========= =========== =========
   Diluted            $0.15     $0.22     $0.12       $0.72     $0.40
                   ========= ========= ========= =========== =========
Shares used in
 computation:
   Basic            373,347   372,137   378,199     373,785   381,387
                   ========= ========= ========= =========== =========
   Diluted          381,351   379,785   388,299     382,473   389,753
                   ========= ========= ========= =========== =========


Tax rate               18.3%      3.0%     27.0%       16.8%     27.0%
% of Sales:
    Gross margin       69.8%     69.4%     67.5%       69.5%     67.9%
    Research and
     development       19.6%     18.2%     19.0%       17.8%     21.6%
    Selling,
     general, and
     administrative    22.8%     20.3%     22.0%       20.7%     22.3%
    Income from
     operations        27.5%     30.9%     26.5%       31.0%     24.0%
    Net income         24.2%     31.4%     20.8%       27.1%     18.8%

Note: Statements of income for the three month period ended October 1,
2004 and for the year ended December 31, 2004 included a one-time tax
benefit of $17.1 million primarily related to a settlement with Hong
Kong's Inland Revenue Department for the tax years 1997 to 2003.



                          ALTERA CORPORATION
                 CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
                        (Dollars in thousands)
                              (Unaudited)

                                     Dec. 31     Oct. 1      Jan. 2
                                        2004       2004        2004
                                   ----------- ----------- -----------
Assets

Current assets:
  Cash and short-term investments  $1,203,248  $1,148,525  $1,031,890
  Accounts receivable, net             67,522      61,593      87,204
  Inventories                          67,454      59,707      44,583
  Other current assets                142,725     179,177     136,938
                                   ----------- ----------- -----------
Total current assets                1,480,949   1,449,002   1,300,615
Long-term investments                       -           -      14,451
Property and equipment, net           159,587     156,970     160,924
Deferred income taxes and other
 assets, net                           49,982      47,317      42,199
                                   ----------- ----------- -----------
                                   $1,690,518  $1,653,289  $1,518,189
                                   =========== =========== ===========

Liabilities and Stockholders'
 Equity

Current liabilities:
  Accounts payable and current
   liabilities                       $190,813    $214,952    $170,364
  Deferred income and allowances on
   sales to distributors              221,081     235,076     245,421
                                   ----------- ----------- -----------
Total current liabilities             411,894     450,028     415,785
Stockholders' equity                1,278,624   1,203,261   1,102,404
                                   ----------- ----------- -----------
                                   $1,690,518  $1,653,289  $1,518,189
                                   =========== =========== ===========


Key Ratios & Information

Current Assets/Current Liabilities        4:1         3:1         3:1
Liabilities/Equity                        1:3         1:3         1:3
Annualized Return on Equity                24%         25%         14%
Quarterly Depreciation Expense         $6,245      $6,184     $10,875
Quarterly Capital Expenditures         $8,862      $5,871      $4,615
Annualized Sales per Employee            $489        $504        $426
Number of Employees                     2,164       2,132       1,995
Inventory MSOH (a): Altera                2.8         2.2         1.9
Inventory MSOH (a): Distribution          1.4         1.3         1.7
Days Sales Outstanding                     26          21          36

(a) MSOH: Months Supply On Hand

Note: Certain reclassifications have been made to prior period
balances in order to conform to the current period's presentation.



                          ALTERA CORPORATION
                            REVENUE SUMMARY
                              (Unaudited)

                                        Quarterly
                                         Growth
                                          Rates    Year ending  Annual
                                        ----------  ----------- Growth
                      Q4'04 Q3'04 Q4'03  Q-Q  Y-Y   2004  2003   Rate
                      ----- ----- ----- ---- ----   ----- ----- ------
Geography
----------------------
North America           29%   28%   31%  -5%   5%     29%   33%     7%
                      ----- ----- -----             ----- -----
Europe                  22%   22%   21%  -8%  16%     23%   22%    27%
Japan                   24%   26%   24% -18%  12%     25%   24%    29%
Asia Pacific            25%   24%   24%  -6%  12%     23%   21%    36%
                      ----- ----- -----             ----- -----
International           71%   72%   69% -11%  13%     71%   67%    30%
                      ----- ----- -----             ----- -----
Total                  100%  100%  100%  -9%  10%    100%  100%    23%
                      ===== ===== =====             ===== =====


Product Category
----------------------
New                     33%   32%   16%  -6% 124%     27%   12%   186%
Mainstream              37%   39%   47% -15% -13%     42%   50%     2%
Mature & Other          30%   29%   37%  -5% -10%     31%   38%     0%
                      ----- ----- -----             ----- -----
Total                  100%  100%  100%  -9%  10%    100%  100%    23%
                      ===== ===== =====             ===== =====


Market Segment
----------------------
Communications          41%   48%   47% -24%  -4%     45%   44%    25%
Industrial              32%   27%   29%  11%  25%     30%   30%    23%
Computer & Storage      11%   11%   11% -14%   9%     11%   11%    21%
Consumer                16%   14%   13%   7%  31%     14%   15%    19%
                      ----- ----- -----             ----- -----
Total                  100%  100%  100%  -9%  10%    100%  100%    23%
                      ===== ===== =====             ===== =====


Product Category Description
------------------------------
  Category            Products
  New                 Stratix, Stratix II, Stratix GX, Cyclone,
                       MAX 3000A, MAX II, and HardCopy devices
  Mainstream          APEX 20K, APEX 20KC, APEX 20KE, APEX II,
                       FLEX 10KE, ACEX 1K, Excalibur, Mercury,
                       MAX 7000A, and MAX 7000B devices
  Mature & Other      FLEX 6000, FLEX 8000, FLEX 10K, FLEX 10KA,
                       MAX 7000, MAX 7000S, MAX 9000, Classic,
                       configuration and other devices, software and
                       other tools, and intellectual property cores

COPYRIGHT 2005 Business Wire
No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.
Copyright 2005, Gale Group. All rights reserved. Gale Group is a Thomson Corporation Company.

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Date:Jan 24, 2005
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