Cerprobe reports record 1996 results.

TEMPE, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 6, 1997--Cerprobe Corp. (NASDAQ/NM:CRPB) Thursday reported record bookings, backlog, revenue and earnings (before a one-time charge for purchased research and development related to the recent acquisition of CompuRoute Inc.) for the year ended Dec. 31, 1996.

Net sales for the year were $37,308,000, an increase of 43 percent over 1995 sales of $26,099,000. Net income for 1996, before a one-time charge for purchased research and development, was $3,223,000 or 70 cents per share, up 34 percent and 19 percent, respectively, from 1995 net income of $2,402,000 or 59 cents per share.

Including the one-time charge for purchased research and development of $4,584,000, the company had a net loss for 1996 of $1,361,000 or 30 cents per share.

For the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, 1996, net sales were $9,149,000, an increase of 13 percent over net sales of $8,131,000 for the same period in 1995.

Net income for the fourth quarter of 1996, before the one-time charge for purchased research and development, was $692,000 or 13 cents per share, down 3 percent and 19 percent, respectively, from net income for the same period in 1995 of $711,000 or 16 cents per share.

Including the one-time charge for purchased research and development of $4,584,000 in the fourth quarter of 1996, the company had a net loss for the quarter of $3,892,000 or 73 cents per share.

Earnings per share for the full year and the fourth quarter of 1996 were adversely affected by an increase of 12 percent and 23 percent, respectively, in shares outstanding vs. the comparable periods of 1995, due primarily to a $10 million convertible preferred stock offering that was completed in January 1996 and stock options exercised during 1996.

C. Zane Close, president and chief executive officer of Cerprobe, commented on the results, saying, "We are very pleased that we were able to achieve record results for the year, despite the sharp mid-1996 drop in bookings that was brought about primarily by a worldwide slowdown in semiconductor chip production.

"Operating results for the fourth quarter indicate that the chip production recovery has begun, with sequential quarter sales improving approximately 4 percent from the third quarter of 1996 and a corresponding sequential quarter improvement in gross margins from 43.9 percent to 44.7 percent.

"Operating margins in the fourth quarter of 1996 were negatively impacted by start-up expenses related to our new Taiwan facilities.

"Although we cannot yet gauge whether the current recovery will continue throughout the balance of the year," added Close, "we are pleased to report that year-end 1996 backlog -- excluding that of CompuRoute, which we did not acquire until Dec. 27 -- was approximately $4.8 million, a significant improvement over backlog of approximately $2.9 million at year-end 1995.

"Current bookings are strong, and we remain optimistic that 1997 will be another record year for the company."

Close also noted that Cerprobe recently filed a Form 8-K with the SEC related to its January 1997 acquisition of Silicon Valley Test & Repair Inc. In the filing, the company disclosed that it intends to take a one-time charge for purchased research and development of approximately $5.4 million in the first quarter of 1997.

Commenting on the write-offs of purchased research and development related to the two acquisitions, Close said, "The one-time charges will adversely impact the results of the quarters in which they are reported; however, they will minimize the impact of the acquisitions on our consolidated results for 1997 and enable the transactions to be accretive to earings at the earliest point possible in 1997."

Close noted that the acquisitions of CompuRoute (a designer and fabricator of printed circuit boards and assemblies used in the testing of semiconductors) and Silicon Valley Test & Repair (a company that specializes in refurbishing and upgrading water probing equipment used by semiconductor manufacturers) are central to the company's strategy to build market share through synergistic acquisitions of complementary products and services toward its goal of providing its worldwide customers with complete solutions for semiconductor test integration.

"With these acquisitions and the recently announced opening of our Taiwan facility," said Close, "we are in an excellent position to benefit from an improvement in unit-demand for chips and circuits."

Cerprobe develops and manufactures products and equipment for the high-performance testing of integrated circuits and microelectronics components and markets its products worldwide to semiconductor manufacturers.

The Arizona-based company operates domestic manufacturing facilities in Arizona, California and Texas. The company also operates international subsidiaries: Cerprobe Europe Ltd. in Scotland; and Cerprobe Asia in Singapore and Taiwan.

"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: The statements in this release regarding the slowdown and subsequent recovery of the semiconductor ship production market, the company's anticipated operating performance for 1997, and the expansion of the company's products and markets are forward-looking statements that include risk and uncertainties, including but not limited to product demand and development, ability to maintain customer diversity and relationships, technological advancements, impact of competitive products and pricing, growth in targeted markets, manufacturing capacity, risks of foreign operations, ability to integrate and leverage acquisitions, and other information detailed from time to time in the company's financial press releases and Securities and Exchange Commission filings. -0-

                           Cerprobe Corp.
            Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations
                 (In thousands, except per-share data)

                           Three Months ended  Twelve Months ended
                                 Dec. 31             Dec. 31
                              1996     1995       1996     1995
                               (Unaudited)

Net sales                   $ 9,149  $ 8,131   $ 37,308  $ 26,099

Cost and expenses:
  Cost of sales               5,058    4,315     20,343    13,706
  Selling, general
   and administrative         2,854    2,393     10,725     7,503
  Engineering and
   product development          179      178        903       707
  Purchased research and
   development                4,584       --      4,584        --
                             12,675    6,886     36,555    21,916
  Operating income (loss)    (3,526)   1,245        753     4,183

Other income (expense):
  Interest expense              (55)     (20)      (222)     (154)
  Interest and other income     217       31        714       185
                                162       11        492        31

Income (loss) before income
 taxes and minority interest (3,364)   1,256      1,245     4,214
  Provision for taxes           539      545      2,701     1,812
  Minority interest              11       --         95        --
Net income (loss)           $(3,892) $   711   $ (1,361)  $ 2,402

Earnings (loss) per share:
  Before purchased research
   and development expense  $  0.13  $  0.16   $   0.70   $  0.59
  Primary                   $ (0.73) $  0.16   $  (0.30)  $  0.59
  Fully diluted             $ (0.73) $  0.14   $  (0.30)  $  0.49

  Primary Shares
   outstanding             5,362,027 4,365,151 4,579,598 4,071,233
  Fully diluted shares
   outstanding             5,362,027 5,004,326 4,579,598 4,862,137

                           Cerprobe Corp.
                 Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets
                           (in thousands)

                                     Dec. 31      Dec. 31
                                       1996         1995
Assets

Current assets:
  Cash and cash equivalents        $   5,565    $     264
  Accounts receivable, net             5,564        4,377
  Inventories, net                     3,863        2,802
  Other current assets                 1,043          546

         Total current assets         16,035        7,989

Property and equipment, net           11,502        4,668
Intangible assets, net                 2,547        1,997
Other assets                           1,327          313

         Total assets               $ 31,411     $ 14,967

Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity

Current liabilities:
  Accounts payable                 $   2,739    $   1,500
  Accrued liabilities                  1,582          788
  Notes payable and current
   portion of long-term debt           1,811          929

         Total current liabilities     6,132        3,217

Long-term debt, less current portion   1,742          981
Deferred income taxes and other
 liabilities                             394          113

         Total liabilities             8,268        4,311

Minority interest in net assets of
 consolidated subsidiaries                13           --

Stockholders' equity                  23,130       10,656


         Total liabilities and
          stockholders' equity     $  31,411    $  14,967
-0-

CONTACT: Cerprobe, Tempe

Randal L. Buness, 602/967-7885

or

Silverman Heller Associates

Eugene G. Heller, 310/208-2550