About Cohu

Cohu, Inc. (Cohu) is a global technology leader supplying test, interface, automation, inspection and metrology products, software and services to the semiconductor industry. Cohu’s differentiated and broad product portfolio enables optimized yield and productivity, accelerating customers’ manufacturing time-to-market. The company offers a wide range of products and services, and revenue from its capital equipment products is driven by the capital expenditure budgets and spending patterns of its customers, who often delay or accelerate purchases in reaction to variations in their business. The company’s recurring revenues are driven by increases in its product installed base and in the number of semiconductor devices that are tested, and by the continuous introduction of new products and technologies by its customers. On January 30, 2023, the company completed the acquisition of MCT Worldwide, LLC (MCT), a U.S. based company with its principal manufacturing site in Penang, Malaysia. MCT provides automated solutions for the semiconductor industry and designs, manufactures, markets, services and distributes strip test handlers, film frame handlers and laser mark handlers. On October 2, 2023, the company acquired Equiptest Engineering Pte. Ltd. (EQT), a Singapore-based company. EQT is a provider of semiconductor test contactors and other test consumables. MCT and EQT are included in Cohu’s consolidated results from operations as of the date of acquisition. Products The company sells the following products: Semiconductor Automated Test Equipment (ATE) is used both for wafer-level and device package testing. The company’s semiconductor ATE solutions consist primarily of two platforms for the system on a chip (SoC) device market. The Diamondx tester offers high-density instrumentation for testing various semiconductors: microcontrollers, application specific standard products (ASSP), power management, radio frequency (RF), display drivers, sensors and other mixed signal devices. The PAx tester is a focused tester for RF Front End IC and Module applications. Semiconductor Handlers are used in conjunction with semiconductor ATE to automate the testing of packaged semiconductor devices. The company’s handlers support a variety of package sizes and device types, including those used in automotive, mobility, industrial and computing applications, among others. The company offers a broad range of test handlers, including pick-and-place, turret, gravity, strip, film frame, laser mark, micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) and thermal sub-systems. T-Core is the company’s proprietary thermal technology for improving device under test temperature accuracy, enabling higher test yield, particularly for power dissipative devices such as microprocessors, graphic processor units, and high-performance semiconductors used in artificial intelligence data centers. Interface Products include test contactors, probe heads and probe pins. Test contactors serve as the interface between the test handler and the semiconductor device under test (such as digital semiconductor devices utilizing spring probe technology, power management and LED semiconductor devices utilizing cantilever technology) and RF semiconductor devices based on contacts designed to operate at high frequencies. With the recent acquisition of EQT, the company expanded its interface products in mid- to high-power contactors. Test contactors and probe heads are specific to individual semiconductor device designs, need to be replaced frequently, and increase in size with the number of devices tested in parallel. Interface Products are included in the company’s recurring revenues. Inspection and Metrology are products that provide advanced vision capabilities. The company offers a wide range of solutions for inspection of singulated molded leaded and leadless devices, and post-singulated wafer-level chip scale packages (WLCSP) and bare dies. NV-Core is the company’s unique vision technology, enabling advanced inspection and metrology, such as 3-dimensional topographic inspection, sidewall micro-crack detection, and infrared inspection for sub-surface defect detection. DI-Core Data Analytics is a comprehensive software suite used to optimize Cohu equipment performance. DI-Core data analytics provides real-time online performance monitoring and process control to improve utilization, manage predictive maintenance, and link semiconductor tester, handler and test contactor data. DI-Core data analytics is a software subscription service included in the company’s recurring revenue. Spares and Kits are consumable, non-consumable and spare items that are used to maintain, sustain or otherwise enable customers’ equipment to meet its performance, availability and production requirements. The company also designs and manufactures a wide range of device dedication kits that enable handlers to process different semiconductor packages. Spares and Kits are included in its recurring revenues. Services are provided by the company’s worldwide service organization and include installation and necessary maintenance of its systems’ installed base. The company provides various parts and labor warranties on its test and handling systems and instruments. The company also provides training on the maintenance and operation of its systems, as well as application, data management software and consulting services on its products. Services are included in its recurring revenues. Sales by Product Line and Related Marketing Efforts The company markets its products worldwide through a combination of a direct sales force and independent sales representatives. In geographic areas where there is sufficient sales potential, it generally employs its own personnel. The company’s U.S. sales offices are located in Poway and Milpitas, California; St. Paul, Minnesota; Lincoln, Rhode Island and Norwood, Massachusetts. The company’s European sales offices are located in Kolbermoor, Germany; Grenoble, France; Agrate, Italy and La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland. The company operates in Asia with sales and service offices in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Taiwan, China, South Korea and Japan. Customers The company’s customers include semiconductor integrated device manufacturers, fabless design houses, and test subcontractors throughout the world. Repeat sales to existing customers represent a significant portion of its sales. Research and Development The company’s total research and development expense was $88.6 million in 2023. Seasonality Historically, the semiconductor industry has been cyclical as well as seasonal with recurring periods of oversupply and excess capacity, which often have had a significant effect on the semiconductor industry’s demand for capital equipment, such as the type the company manufactures and markets. History The company was founded in 1947. The company was incorporated under the laws of California in 1947. It was formerly known as Kalbfell Lab, Inc. and changed its name to Kay Lab in 1954. In 1957, the company was reincorporated under the laws of the state of Delaware as Cohu Electronics, Inc. Further, the company changed its name to Cohu, Inc. in 1972.