“During the fourth quarter, we delivered sales of $4.2 billion and adjusted diluted EPS of $0.64 despite the uncertain environment,” said Avnet CFO Tom Liguori. “Our business operations and finance teams worked diligently throughout the quarter to optimize our working capital and deliver value to our customers. Our quarterly cash flow from operations totaled $288 million, which marks the 7th consecutive quarter of positive cash flow. For fiscal year 2020, our operating cash flow totaled $730 million.”

Liguori continued, “While taking steps to conserve cash in the quarter, we also reduced adjusted operating expenses by $16 million sequentially and by $7 million year over year. Looking ahead, as we evaluate the economic impact of COVID-19 and the current demand environment, we are establishing a plan to reduce our net operating expenses by $75 million annually. This plan will be in place by the December quarter, and we will implement it while continuing to optimize our working capital levels.”

Additional Fourth Quarter Fiscal 2020 Updates

• Awarded the Cypress Semiconductor product line by Infineon, further expanding the breadth of our line card.
• Redeemed $300 million of outstanding 5.875% notes in April 2020.
• Returned $21 million to shareholders with dividends paid during the quarter.
• Recorded an income tax refund receivable of over $100 million related to the reduction in value in certain assets and from the impact of the CARES Act, most of which is expected to be realized in fiscal 2021.

Outlook for the First Quarter of Fiscal 2021 Ending on October 3, 2020

The above guidance is based upon market conditions existing as of today, and excludes amortization of intangibles, any potential restructuring, integration, and other expenses and certain income tax adjustments. The above guidance assumes 100 million average diluted shares outstanding and average U.S. Dollar to Euro and GBP currency exchange rates are as shown below: