iSuppli issues fast facts on Seagate’s earnings

EL SEGUNDO, USA: To support media coverage of Seagate Technology LLC’s announcement of its fiscal third quarter results, iSuppli Corp. is issuing the following fast facts:

* Seagate in the fourth calendar quarter of 2009 maintained its ranking as the world’s largest manufacturer of Hard Disk Drives (HDD), fending off a strong challenge by perennially second-ranked Western Digital Corp.

* Shipping approximately 49.9 million HDD units in the fourth calendar quarter of 2009—up 8 percent from third-quarter levels of 46.3 million—Seagate controlled 31 percent of the market. Revenue rose 14 percent to $3.03 billion in the fourth quarter, up from $2.66 billion in the third, translating into a 34 percent share of market.

The table presents iSuppli’s fourth calendar quarter of 2009 HDD market share ranking.Source: iSuppli, USA

* “The tenacious hold at the top for Seagate surprised many observers who thought Western Digital would bypass its primary competitor in the fourth quarter of last year,” said Fang Zhang, analyst for storage systems at iSuppli. “Despite shipping a record 49.5 million HDD units—a 12 percent expansion from the earlier quarter—Western Digital was unable to dislodge Seagate and had to settle once again for second place, finishing close behind with approximately 30 percent market share.”

* While Zhang has not completed her analysis of first-quarter results in the HDD industry, she believes that Seagate is likely to maintain its top ranking in the first calendar quarter of 2010, corresponding with the company’s third fiscal quarter.

* Given the seasonal nature of the market, overall HDD unit shipments in the first quarter of 2010 are expected to have decreased slightly compared to the fourth quarter of 2009. Global HDD unit shipments in the first quarter of 2010 amounted to 159.6 million units, down 3.1 percent from 164.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2009, according to iSuppli’s preliminary estimate.

* However, HDD unit shipments in the first quarter of 2010 are estimated to have risen dramatically compared to the dismal conditions during the same period in 2009. Shipments rose 43.6 percent from 111.1 million in the first quarter of 2009, according to iSuppli’s preliminary estimate. The attached figure presents iSuppli’s forecast of quarterly HDD unit shipments worldwide.

* For all of 2010, global HDD unit shipments are expected to rise to 674.6 million units up 22.8 percent from 549.5 million in 2009. This contrasts markedly with 2009, when shipments declined by 2 percent.Source: iSuppli, USA