* Q1 revenue $15.1 mln versus I/B/E/S view $14.8 mln
* Non-GAAP EPS $0.24 vs $0.22 view
TEL AVIV, May 2 (Reuters) – Israeli mobile chip designer
Ceva Inc posted higher first-quarter profit that beat
expectations as the company awarded new licenses for use of its
chips in smartphones.
Ceva on Wednesday reported quarterly earnings per share
excluding one-off items of 24 cents a share, compared with 23
cents a year earlier. Revenue was unchanged at $15.1 million.
The company was forecast to earn 22 cents a share on revenue
of $14.8 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Ceva itself had forecast in January first-quarter EPS of
20-22 cents on revenue of $14.2 million to $15.2 million, citing
a temporary slowdown in cellphone sales for the relatively weak
outlook.
“Driven by strong licensing activities, we generated
revenue and earnings results at the high-end of our
expectations,” Chief Executive Gideon Wertheizer said.
Companies such as Intel, Broadcom,
Spreadtrum and ST Ericsson license
Ceva’s technology to build chips known as digital signal
processors (DSP).
Ceva had been benefiting from rising sales of smartphones
such as the Samsung Galaxy S2 and the Droid Charge, which use
its technology through suppliers such as Intel and ST Ericsson.
Wertheizer said the company has new licensees who will use
its DSP cores for advanced audio processing in smartphones.
