RF Micro Trims Guidance

RF Micro Devices (RFMD Quote) sees a slowdown ahead and lowered guidance for its fiscal first quarter ending in June.

The Greensboro, N.C., mobile phone chipmaker says sales for the fiscal year ending Thursday will exceed $1 billion, roughly in line with analysts' expectations. But demand for phone parts has weakened and the company is looking for a sequential drop in its financial performance in the coming quarter.

"Our customer forecasts in the aggregate currently indicate a sequential decrease in the June quarter, compared to the March quarter, in revenue, margins and earnings per share," says CFO Dean Priddy.

Analysts were looking for fiscal first quarter adjusted earnings to remain flat sequentially at 11 cents a share on a 3% increase in revenue over the prior quarter, according to Reuters Research.

The news comes as one of RFMD's big customers, top U.S. phone-maker Motorola (MOT Quote), has run into a massive one-year sales slump and is sitting on a mountain of unsold phones. Motorola has vowed to restore profits in its handset business, presumably through staff and production cuts.

RFMD shares fell 34 cents to $6.73 in after-hours trading Wednesday.