Nordic Semiconductor

Earnings Release • Apr 28, 2022

NOD: First quarter 2022 Results

NOD: First quarter 2022 Results

(Oslo, Norway – April 28, 2022) Nordic Semiconductor ASA reported revenue of USD 183.1 million for the first quarter 2022, an increase of 28% from the first quarter last year. Revenue growth continues to be capped by limited wafer availability. Gross profit was USD 109.3 million, with a strong gross margin of 59.7%. EBITDA more than doubled to USD 54.8 million in the first quarter, corresponding to an EBITDA-margin of 29.9%.

Demand has been significantly above what Nordic has been able to deliver over the past year, and the company has been working with customers to adjust order volumes to better match delivery capabilities under the current wafer constraints. As a result, the order backlog has been reduced to USD 1 537 million from USD 1 687 million at the end of 2021, and further backlog adjustments are required unless the wafer supply situation is resolved.

“Given the current wafer constraints our revenue development is determined by supply and not demand, and our order backlog development is currently not a good indicator of demand or short-term revenue expectations. We have customers wanting to place large orders both for this year and next year but are reluctant to take orders unless we can confirm timely delivery,” says CEO Svenn-Tore Larsen in Nordic Semiconductor.

Current wafer allocations allow the company to guide for revenue of USD 190-210 million in the second quarter 2022. The company anticipates higher wafer allocation in the second half of the year and to generate revenue in 2022 that keeps the company on track for its 2023 revenue target of USD 1 billion.

Cellular IoT revenues were affected by component shortage in the first quarter, and this is expected to persist in the second quarter. These supply constraints are anticipated to have been solved in the second half of the year.

Nordic sees continued strong growth opportunities well beyond 2023 and maintains its ambition to generate annual revenue growth of at least 25% in 2023-26.

The strong gross margin in the first quarter reflected continued depletion of materials purchased prior to the supplier price increases in late 2021. With the current visibility the company expects that continued positive changes in customer and product mix will generate gross margins above 54% for both the second quarter and full year 2022.

The company maintains its medium-term target to generate gross margins above 50%, allowing for changes in customer mix and higher revenue from Cellular IoT.

“Our outlook stands firm. We are working on a cross-technology development program to make sure we maintain our lead on connectivity and deliver the type of features and performance that future IoT solutions will require. Our new platform will adopt process technologies optimized for IoT and we will expand our capacity through multi-sourcing. We are looking forward to start ramping new short-range products in the second half of 2023,” says Larsen.

Practical arrangements

The management team will host a webcast presenting the first quarter results today at 08:00 CEST. The presentation will be held in English. A live webcast of the presentation can be found at www.nordicsemi.com/IR, and a recorded version of the presentation will also be available after the event.

For further information, please contact:

Pål Elstad, CFO Nordic Semiconductor ASA Phone: +47 991 66 293

Ståle Ytterdal, SVP IR Nordic Semiconductor ASA Phone: +47 930 37 430

About Nordic Semiconductor:

Nordic Semiconductor has been a pioneer in ultra- low power wireless solutions, from proprietary technologies for PC accessories to today’s Bluetooth low energy and multiprotocol products and long-range cellular IoT solutions. Nordic Semiconductor is the clear market leader in the ultra-low power wireless segment, serving a growing market in consumer electronics, wearables, building and retail, healthcare and an increasing number of other verticals and applications. Nordic Semiconductor (NOD) is a public company listed on the Oslo stock exchange in Norway.

For more information go to www.nordicsemi.com

This information is subject to the disclosure requirements according to §5-12 in the Norwegian Securities Trading Act.