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Published Wed, Aug 11, 2010 05:36 AM
Modified Wed, Aug 11, 2010 12:09 AM

Cree's sales, profits light up

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- Staff Writer

LED lighting company Cree continues to post results that are beyond the reach of most companies.

After the markets closed Tuesday, the Durham company reported revenue of $264.6 million in the fiscal fourth quarter that ended June 27, up 79 percent from a year earlier.

The profit picture also was robust. Net income totaled $52.8 million, five times the $9.7 million of a year ago.

Analyst Seth Dadds of GARP research called it "a good quarter" that was in line with Wall Street's estimates.

Nonetheless, investors - perhaps jaded by Cree's continuing success - weren't impressed. Cree shares fell as much as 10 percent in after-hours trading.

Dadds said he didn't see a reason for the decline but speculated that some investors may have out-sized expectations for the company.

Cree's revenue growth was driven by its products for interior and exterior lighting. The company makes its own light fixtures and bulbs powered by light-emitting diodes, or LEDs, as well as supplying LEDs to lighting companies. LED lights are more expensive than incandescent lights but last longer and are more energy-efficient.

The company's LEDs also are used to illuminate car dashboards, cell phones, televisions and signs.

"Fiscal 2010 was a very successful year for Cree and the LED lighting revolution," CEO Chuck Swoboda said during a conference call. "We remain confident that we are in the early stages of the broad adoption of LED lighting over the next 10 to 15 years."

Cree employs about 4,500 workers worldwide, including 2,500 at its headquarters in Durham, where it is expanding capacity at its manufacturing plant.

For the entire fiscal year, Cree posted revenue of $867.3 million, up 53 percent from a year ago. Net income totaled $152.3 million, or $1.45 per share, up from $30.3 million in fiscal 2009.

Earlier Tuesday, Cree shares fell $2.63 to close at $68.96. Its shares have risen 22 percent this year, and CNBC's "Mad Money" host, Jim Cramer, recently recommended the stock.

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