Arm in the chips

Consumers' voracious demand for mobile computing devices continues unabated and that proved a fillip for chip designer Arm Holdings after the Cambridge-based company produced another year of surging profits. Royalties in its main chip business increased by 17 per cent to $418m (£264m) at a time when other semiconductor manufacturers are suffering due to the fall-off in personal computer sales. Arm's rise mirrors the early dominance of Apple, but the market is now changing and rivals such as Intel are starting to challenge. However, given the universal application of Arm's technology, there are few signs that the business is feeling any ill effect from increased competition in the supply chain.

The fourth quarter was particularly good for royalty revenues, which increased by 21 per cent year on year. These represent orders placed in the third quarter and are timed by manufacturers to hit the run-up to Christmas. In addition to the seasonal uplift, the surge in royalties was down to Arm winning market share as competitors such as Intel struggled to shift away from personal computer chips and failed to make much of a dent in the mobile devices market. In fact, Arm's management raised its guidance for royalty revenue growth this year to 15-20 per cent from its historic 10-15 per cent.

Brokerage Peel Hunt raised its current-year pre-tax profit estimates by 7 per cent to £349m, which translates into a 12 per cent upgrade in adjusted EPS to 20p, up from £276m and 14.7p, respectively, in 2012.

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