AMSTERDAM (Reuters) -ASML Holding NV, one of the key suppliers to computer chip makers, increased its financial forecasts on Wednesday and said it would have revenue growth of around 11% annually through 2030 amid booming demand for its products.
In a pre-market statement, the company estimated revenue would hit 24-30 billion euros ($28 billion-35 billion) in 2025 with gross margins up to 55%. That compares with the previous forecast of a 15-24 billion euro range in the same year, at gross margins of at least 50%.
“Global megatrends in the electronics industry, supported by a highly profitable and fiercely innovative ecosystem, are expected to continue to fuel growth across the semiconductor market,” ASML said in a statement.
The company’s top executives are due to appear at an investor event Wednesday at which they may detail plans to increase production, as semiconductor makers scramble to address the global chip shortage and expand to meet future demand. ASML is operating at maximum capacity to supply major chip makers such as TSMC, Samsung and Intel.
“ASML and its supply chain partners are actively adding and improving capacity to meet this future customer demand,” it said.
ASML makes lithography systems, large machines that use energy beams to map out the tiny circuitry of computer chips. Its most cutting-edge tools cost 160 million euros each and sit at the heart of semiconductor fabrication plants.
At second quarter earnings in July, ASML forecast a 35% increase in sales to nearly 19 billion euros in 2021, at gross margins of better than 50%, putting it past the lower end of its 2025 range of goals.
The company’s stock has reflected its strong outlook with a market capitalization around 272 billion euros, making it Europe’s largest technology company.
Even after a 7% fall it its share price amid Tuesday’s sell-off, ASML shares are up 67% in the year to date and more than 110% in the past year, strongly outperforming the sector.
($1 = 0.8537 euros)
(Reporting by Toby Sterling; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Gerry Doyle)
