Seagate Technology reported financial results for its fourth quarter and fiscal year ended July 1, 2022. “Our June quarter results reflect stable mass capacity storage demand, offset by the impacts of Covid restrictive measures in Asia and weakening global economic conditions on our other end markets.
These impacts were most pronounced in our consumer facing Legacy markets,” said Dave Mosley, Seagate’s chief executive officer.
“The confluence of macro-related challenges is continuing into the September quarter. In this environment, we are reducing our production plans to maintain supply discipline as our customers manage through macro uncertainty and on-going non-HDD component shortages, and we are diligently managing expenses to protect profitability.
Looking further ahead, I remain confident that the multiple secular growth trends fueling demand for data and mass capacity storage solutions remain intact. Seagate is well positioned for macro recovery with a strong product roadmap, deep customer relationships and proven track record for disciplined execution.”
The Company generated $180 million in cash flow from operations and $108 million in free cash flow during the fiscal fourth quarter 2022. For fiscal year 2022, the Company generated $1.7 billion in cash flow from operations and $1.3 billion in free cash flow. During the fiscal fourth quarter, the Company paid cash dividends of $152 million and repurchased 6 million ordinary shares for $486 million. For the full year, the Company paid cash dividends of $610 million and used $1.8 billion to repurchase 20 million ordinary shares, or 9% of the outstanding shares. Cash and cash equivalents totaled $615 million. There were 210 million ordinary shares issued and outstanding as of the end of the fiscal year.
For a detailed reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP results, see accompanying financial tables.
Seagate has issued a Supplemental Financial Information document, which is available on Seagate’s Investor Relations website at investors.seagate.com.
Quarterly Cash Dividend
The Board of Directors of the Company (the “Board”) declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.70 per share, which will be payable on October 5, 2022 to shareholders of record as of the close of business on September 21, 2022. The payment of any future quarterly dividends will be at the discretion of the Board and will be dependent upon Seagate’s financial position, results of operations, available cash, cash flow, capital requirements and other factors deemed relevant by the Board.
Business Outlook
The business outlook for the fiscal first quarter 2023 is based on our current assumptions and expectations; actual results may differ materially, as a result of, among other things, the important factors discussed in the Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements section of this release.
The Company is providing the following guidance for its fiscal first quarter 2023:
Guidance regarding non-GAAP diluted EPS excludes known charges related to amortization of acquired intangible assets of $0.01 per share and estimated share-based compensation expenses of $0.19 per share.
We have not reconciled our non-GAAP diluted EPS guidance for fiscal first quarter 2023 to the most directly comparable GAAP measure because material items that may impact these measures are out of our control and/or cannot be reasonably predicted, including, but not limited to, accelerated depreciation, impairment and other charges related to cost saving efforts, restructuring charges and other, net, losses and costs recognized on the modification or early redemption and repurchase of debt, strategic investment losses (gains) or impairment recognized, income tax adjustments on these measures, and other charges or benefits that may arise.
The amounts of these measures are not currently available but may be material to future results. A reconciliation of the non-GAAP diluted EPS guidance for fiscal first quarter 2023 to the corresponding GAAP measures is not available without unreasonable effort. A reconciliation of our historical non-GAAP financial measures to their nearest GAAP equivalent is contained in this release.
Investor Communications
Seagate management will hold a public webcast today at 2:00 p.m. Pacific / 5:00 p.m. Eastern that can be accessed on its Investor Relations website at investors.seagate.com.
An archived audio webcast of this event will be available on Seagate’s Investor Relations website at investors.seagate.com shortly following the event conclusion.
