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Micron Names Foster Financial Chief

Alexei Oreskovic

SAN FRANCISCO -- MicronMU tapped a former board member to oversee its finances Thursday, as the company continues to reel from a major downturn in the memory chip business.

Micron said Ronald Foster will serve as its new CFO effective April 1, replacing longtime CFO Wilbur Stover, who announced plans to retire in July.

Foster has worn the CFO hat at various technology companies, including FormFactorFORM and JDS UniphaseJDSU. He also was a director on Micron's board between June 2004 and April 2005.

In returning to the Boise, Idaho, chipmaker, Foster finds a company under severe pressure as a result of crashing prices for the DRAM and NAND flash memory chips it produces. In the three months ended Nov. 29, Micron posted a loss of $262 million, with a stunning 0.3% gross margin.

The company's stock price has plunged roughly 58% from its 52-week high of $14.20. Shares of Micron were off 3 cents at $5.95 in extended trading Thursday.

The glut of memory chips flooding the market has hurt virtually all the chipmakers in the business, including SanDiskSNDKand QimondaQI.

Earlier this month, IntelINTC, which operates a joint venture manufacturing NAND flash memory chips with Micron, blamed weak prices for weaker-than-expected profit margins in its current quarter .

Micron is due to report earnings results for its fiscal second quarter in less than two weeks.