A contract amendment at its Dortmund operation reduced Littelfuse, Inc.’s semiconductor sales in the third quarter, leaving reported net sales below the company’s earlier range even though adjusted sales remained inside it.
The company recorded net sales of $766.729 million for the quarter ended Sept. 26, up 22.7% from $624.640 million a year earlier. The total was $13.271 million below the bottom of Littelfuse’s $780 million to $800 million outlook, issued after its second-quarter results in July.
Littelfuse’s Q3 earnings release, furnished as an exhibit to its Form 8-K, said a one-time $28.5 million fee tied to a Dortmund contract amendment was recorded as a reduction in semiconductor sales. Adding the fee back in its non-GAAP adjusted net sales figure brought the total to $795.2 million, within the prior outlook range. The company said it made the amendment to give its semiconductor business more flexibility, streamline older contract terms and improve its Dortmund asset.
Adjusted diluted earnings per share rose 96% from $2.95 a year earlier to $5.79, a company record. That was 74 cents above the previous forecast’s $5.05 upper limit. GAAP diluted EPS increased 62% from $2.77 to $4.49.
Industrial segment sales reached $157.847 million, up 64.6%. Littelfuse attributed 38% of the segment’s growth to its Basler acquisition; organic sales also increased 27%.
For the fourth quarter, the company forecast net sales of $750 million to $770 million and adjusted diluted EPS of $5.05 to $5.25. President and CEO Greg Henderson cited continued demand across the company’s markets and expected revenue to rise about 28% from a year earlier.
Littelfuse scheduled a $0.80 dividend payment for Dec. 3 to shareholders of record Nov. 19.
