Akoustis Technologies (“Akoustis” or the “Company”), an integrated device manufacturer (IDM) of patented bulk acoustic wave (BAW) high-band RF filters for mobile and other wireless applications, has announced first fiscal quarter results for the period ended September 30, 2023. Revenue was up 26% year-over-year to $7.0 million, in line with the Company’s guidance.
Based on hundreds of active customers, robust activity in the sales and design win pipelines, and the semiconductor services business, as well as new product introductions in Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7 and 5G infrastructure the Company expects, as previously guided, to report the December quarter to be flat. Looking ahead, the Company expects return to record revenue in the March quarter of up 18 to 25% in the $8.3 to $8.8 million range.
Over the past several months we have undertaken significant expense reductions and cost saving measures that we estimate will reduce our operating cash flow burn rate below $8 million for the December quarter. Given the top-line projections, the Chips ITC refund, and a full quarter of cost savings, we currently expect operating cash burn to be below $6 million in the March quarter with operating cashflow breakeven less than one year away.
Jeff Shealy, founder and CEO of Akoustis, stated, “Maintaining strategic focus, Akoustis persists in driving advancements within the Wi-Fi AP, 5G Infrastructure, and Automotive sectors. Our sales growth is being driven by multiple factors including Wi-Fi 7 design wins with Tier-1 and Tier-2 consumer equipment manufacturers, XBAW® foundry orders in the 5G mobile and defense markets, and the introduction of Akoustis’ latest single-crystal piezoelectric nanomaterials and XP3F technology to extend XBAW® to frequencies up to 18 GHz.” Mr. Shealy continued, “While the Company continues to drive robust pipeline activity especially in the Wi-Fi space, we have undertaken significant internal expense reductions and cost saving measures that we estimate will reduce our operating expenses annually up to $14 million and in turn extend our cash runway to operating cashflow breakeven.”
Recent Business Highlights
- Received two Wi-Fi 7 4x4 MU-MIMO filter design wins from Tier-1 & 2 consumer Wi-Fi OEMs with expected production ramp in March quarter of calendar 2024
- Received a Wi-Fi 6E 2x2 MU-MIMO filter design win from Tier-2 Wi-Fi OEM with expected production ramp in March quarter of calendar 2024
- Secured a design win for XBAW® RF filters from Tier-2 network infrastructure OEM for mMIMO base station with expected production ramp in second quarter of calendar year 2024
- Signed multi-million-dollar DARPA phase II COFFEE contract to advance development of high-frequency XBAW® and XP3F technology
- Deployed new, advanced, single-crystal AIScN XBAW® technology and started sampling new filter with Tier-1 Wi-Fi 7 enterprise customer
- Started production ramp with international engineering and technology company supplying timing products for an electric water metering application
- Introduced new Wi-Fi 6E/Wi-Fi 7 BAW filter and began sampling to multiple customers
- Shipped two new BAW filters using XBAW® foundry process to 5G mobile and Wi-Fi RF front-end customer
- Accepted new foundry purchase order for final iteration of three XBAW® designs for Tier-2 5G mobile and Wi-Fi RF front-end customer for release in first half calendar year 2024
- Received new purchase order as a foundry supplier supporting new DARPA contract for timing control applications in September quarter and expect additional shipments throughout fiscal year 2024.
- The Company’s XBAW® patent portfolio grew to 105 issued and licensed patents, plus 107 patents pending as of October 31, 2023
Akoustis will host an investor call to provide a business update and outlook, followed by a Q & A session, this morning at 8:00 am ET. The call-in numbers are 877-407-3982 (domestic) and 201-493-6780 (international). The conference call will be webcast live on the Company’s website and will be available for playback here.
Akoustis maintains its momentum with robust demand and an expanding sales pipeline for its XBAW® filter products, in addition to its new XBAW®/SAW resonator and oscillator products, and semiconductor back-end services. The company continues to secure new Wi-Fi design wins in its target markets including Wi-Fi, 5G Infrastructure, and Automotive, many of which are slated to ramp into production in the coming months.
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