CEVA INC - Quarter Report: 2006 June (Form 10-Q)

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NOTES TO THE INTERIM CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - CONTINUED

(U.S. dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

 

NOTE 1:    BUSINESS

The financial information in this quarterly report includes the results of CEVA, Inc. and its subsidiaries (the “Company” or “CEVA”). CEVA licenses to semiconductor companies and electronic equipment manufacturers (also known as original equipment manufacturers, or OEMs) digital signal processor (DSP) cores and related intellectual property (IP) solutions that enable a wide variety of electronic devices. The Company’s programmable DSP cores and application-level IP solutions power wireless devices, handheld devices, consumer electronics products, global positioning system (GPS) devices, disk drives and automotive applications.

NOTE 2:    BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

a.     The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles for interim financial information and with the instructions to Form 10-Q and Article 10 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, they do not include all the information and footnotes required by generally accepted accounting principles for complete financial statements. In the opinion of management, all adjustments (including non-recurring adjustments attributable to reorganization and severance and impairment) considered necessary for a fair presentation have been included. Operating results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2006 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the year ending December 31, 2006. For further information, reference is made to the consolidated financial statements and footnotes thereto included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K, as amended, for the year ended December 31, 2005.

The interim condensed consolidated financial statements incorporate the financial statements of the Company and all of its subsidiaries. All significant intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated on consolidation.

The significant accounting policies applied in the annual consolidated financial statements of the Company as of December 31, 2005, contained in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 14, 2006, as further amended on April 28, 2006 (File No. 000-49842), have been applied consistently in these unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements, except as described in subsection (b) below.

b.     Investment in other Company

On June 23, 2006, the Company divested its GPS technology and associated business to a new U.S.-based company, GloNav Inc. (“GloNav”), as detailed below in note 3 . The investment in GloNav is stated at cost, since the Company does not have the ability to exercise significant influence over operating and financial policies of GloNav. The Company records the investment on its Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets as investment in other company. This investment will be reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of the investment may not be recoverable, in accordance with Accounting Principle Board Opinion No.18 "The Equity Method of Accounting for Investments in Common Stock", ("APB No.18").

NOTE 3:    DIVESTMENT OF GPS TECHNOLOGY

As discussed above, on June 23, 2006, the Company divested its GPS technology and associated business to GloNav in return for an equity ownership of 19.9% in GloNav on a fully diluted basis. Out of the 19.9%, CEVA received as consideration 10% in Series A-1 Convertible Voting Preferred Stock (the “Series A-1”) and 9.9% in Series A-2 Convertible Non-Voting Preferred Stock (the “Series A-2”). The Series A-1 and Series A-2 are convertible into voting common stock and non-voting common stock, respectively, of GloNav on a one-for-one basis. Subject to certain limitations, if GloNav engages in future equity funding of up to $20,000, CEVA also will receive additional shares of Series A-2 for no consideration as anti-dilution protection. The additional share issuance is capped at 6.8% of GloNav’s then outstanding shares of capital stock calculated on a post-funding basis after completion of equity funding of up to $20,000. Although CEVA has transferred the GPS customer contracts and GPS intellectual property, CEVA will continue to share with GloNav certain revenues relating to the GPS assets. CEVA’s valuation of its equity investment in GloNav is $5,984 based on the value of the assets and cash attributed to GloNav and the investment was recorded as an investment in other company, net on the Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets and stated at cost. Since GloNav is a newly formed research and development start-up, the gain resulting from the divestment of the GPS technology and associated business in the total amount of $1,751 has been deferred. The excess of the consideration from the divestment over the net book value of the assets in the amount of $1,751 is set out below:

 

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NOTES TO THE INTERIM CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - CONTINUED

(U.S. dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

		(unaudited)
Equity investment in GloNav		$	5,984
Goodwill			(1,900	)
Intangible asset			(845	)
Net working capital			(522	)
Other transaction and related costs			(966	)
Deferred gain related to transaction with GloNav		$	1,751

 

		(unaudited)
Investment in other company, net:
Investment in other company		$	5,984
Deferred gain			(1,751	)
Total investment in other company, net		$	4,233

 

GloNav also has licensed the CEVA-TeakLite DSP core for the development of its GPS chipsets and will pay royalties to CEVA based on its future GPS chip sales.

 

NOTE 4:    GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION AND MAJOR CUSTOMER DATA

a. Summary information about geographic areas:

The Company manages its business on the basis of one industry segment: the licensing of intellectual property to semiconductor companies and electronic equipment manufacturers (see Note 1 for a brief description of the Company’s business).

The following is a summary of operations within geographic areas:

 

		Six months ended June 30,						Three months ended June 30,
		2006 (unaudited)			2005 (unaudited)			2006 (unaudited)			2005 (unaudited)
Revenues based on customer location:
United States		$	7,731		$	8,210		$	2,355		$	6,019
Europe, Middle East and Africa			6,758			4,095			5,137			1,572
Asia Pacific (1)			2,057			7,264			920			1,937
		$	16,546		$	19,569		$	8,412		$	9,528

 

Individual countries representing 10% or more of total revenues included in the table above are as follows:

 

(1) Japan

$

-

$

3,238

$

-

$

1,484

b. Major customer data as a percentage of total revenues:

The following table sets forth the customers that represented 10% or more of the Company’s net revenue in each of the periods set forth below.

		Six months ended June 30,						Three months ended June 30,
		2006 (unaudited)			2005 (unaudited)			2006 (unaudited)			2005 (unaudited)
Customer A			30	%		—			—			—
Customer B			10	%		—			20	%		—
Customer C			—			—			17	%		—
Customer D			—			—			10	%		—
Customer E			—			18	%		—			37	%
Customer F			—			12	%		—			—

 

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NOTES TO THE INTERIM CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - CONTINUED

(U.S. dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

 

NOTE 5:    NET LOSS PER SHARE OF COMMON STOCK

Basic net loss per share is computed based on the weighted-average number of shares of Common Stock outstanding during each period. Diluted net loss per share is computed based on the weighted average number of shares of Common Stock outstanding during each period, plus potential dilutive shares of Common Stock considered outstanding during the period, in accordance with Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (“SFAS”) No. 128, “Earnings Per Share”.

		Six months ended June 30,						Three months ended June 30,
		2006 (unaudited)			2005 (unaudited)			2006 (unaudited)			2005 (unaudited)
Numerator:
Numerator for basic and diluted net loss per share		$	(1,018	)	$	(1,589	)	$	(217	)	$	(2,216	)
Denominator:
Denominator for basic net loss per share
Weighted-average number of shares of Common Stock			19,104			18,713			19,142			18,742
Effect of employee stock options			-			-			-			-
			19,104			18,713			19,142			18,742
Net loss per share
Basic and Diluted		$	(0.05	)	$	(0.08	)	$	(0.01	)	$	(0.12	)

The total number of shares related to outstanding options excluded from the calculation of diluted net loss per share was 4,722,303 for the three and six months period ended June 30, 2006, and 4,993,542 for the corresponding periods of 2005.

NOTE 6:    MARKETABLE SECURITIES

Marketable securities consist of certificates of deposits, corporate bonds and securities and U.S. government and agency securities. Marketable securities are stated at market value, and by policy, CEVA invests in high grade marketable securities to reduce risk of loss. All marketable securities are defined as trading securities under the provisions of SFAS No. 115, “Accounting for Certain Investments in Debt and Equity Securities”, and holding gains and losses are reflected in the Consolidated Statements of Operations.

		As of June 30, 2006
		Cost			Gain (loss)			Market Value
Corporate bonds and securities		$	11,240		$	14		$	11,254
U.S. government and agency securities			12,499			(109	)		12,390
		$	23,739		$	(95	)	$	23,644

NOTE 7:    COMMON STOCK AND STOCK-BASED COMPENSATION PLANS

During the first quarter of 2006, the Company granted options to purchase 53,500 shares of Common Stock, at exercise prices ranging from $6.05 to $6.59 per share, and the Company issued 213,420 shares of Common Stock under its stock option and purchase programs for consideration of $936. Options to purchase 4,941,096 shares were outstanding at March 31, 2006. During the comparable period of 2005, the Company granted options to purchase 51,000 shares of Common Stock, at exercise prices ranging from $7.93 to $8.51 per share, and the Company issued 175,235 shares of Common Stock under its stock option and purchase programs for consideration of $880. Options to purchase 5,820,471 shares were outstanding at March 31, 2005.

During the second quarter of 2006, the Company granted options to purchase 160,000 shares of Common Stock, at exercise prices ranging from $5.76 to $7.59 per share, and the Company issued 12,917 shares of Common Stock under its stock option and purchase programs for consideration of $67. Options to purchase 4,722,303 shares were outstanding at June 30, 2006. During the comparable period of 2005, the Company granted options to purchase 196,700 shares of Common Stock, at exercise prices ranging from $5.85 to $7.12 per share, and the Company issued 46,341 shares of Common Stock under its stock option and purchase programs for consideration of $239. Options to purchase 4,993,542 shares were outstanding at June 30, 2005.

 

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NOTES TO THE INTERIM CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - CONTINUED

(U.S. dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

The weighted-average fair value per share of the options granted during the three months ended March 31, 2006 and June 30, 2006 was $6.52 and $5.90, respectively. During the comparable periods of 2005 the weighted-average fair value per share of the options granted was $8.21 and $6.15, respectively. The exercise prices of such options were equal to the market price of the Company’s Common Stock on the date of the respective option grants.

A summary of activity of options granted to purchase the Company’s Common Stock under the Company’s stock option plans is as follows:

		Six months ended June 30,						Three months ended June 30,
		2006						2006
		(unaudited)						(unaudited)
		Number of options			Weighted average exercise price			Number of options			Weighted average exercise price
Outstanding at the beginning of the year/period			5,020,383		$	8.54			4,941,096		$	8.53
Granted			213,500			6.05			160,000			5.90
Exercised			(39,945	)		5.15			(12,917	)		5.19
Forfeited			(471,635	)		8.26			(365,876	)		8.16
Outstanding at the end of the period			4,722,303		$	8.48			4,722,303		$	8.48
Number of options exercisable as of June 30, 2006			3,000,444		$	9.67			3,000,444		$	9.67

Effective January 1, 2006, the Company adopted the provisions of Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (SFAS) No. 123R, “Share-Based Payment” (“SFAS 123(R)”), which requires the Company to measure all employee stock-based compensation awards using a fair value method and record the related expense in the financial statements. The Company used the Black-Scholes option pricing model. The Company elected to use the modified prospective method of adoption which requires that compensation expense be recorded in the financial statements over the expected requisite service period for any new options granted after the adoption of SFAS 123(R) as well as for existing awards for which the requisite service has not been rendered as of the date of adoption and requires that prior periods not be restated.

The following table shows the total stock-based compensation charge included in the Consolidated Statement of Operations:

		Six months ended June 30,			Three months ended June 30,
		2006			2006
		(unaudited)			(unaudited)
Cost of revenue		$	24		$	9
Research and development expenses			353			134
Sales and marketing expenses			180			78
General and administrative expenses			593			284
Total		$	1,150		$	505

Under SFAS 123(R), the charge has been determined as if CEVA had accounted for its employee stock options under the fair value method of SFAS 123(R). The fair value for these options was estimated on the date of grant using a Black-Scholes option pricing model with the following weighted-average assumptions:

 

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NOTES TO THE INTERIM CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - CONTINUED

(U.S. dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

		Three months ended June 30,
		2006
		(unaudited)
Dividend yield			0%
Expected volatility			36%
Risk-free interest rate			5%
Expected forfeiture			10%
Expected life			4 Years

The fair value for rights to purchase awards under the Employee Share Purchase Plan was estimated on the date of grant using the same assumptions above except the expected life was assumed to be 6 months.

As of June 30, 2006, there was a balance of $1,742 of unrecognized compensation expense related to non-vested awards. There was no capitalized stock-based expense at June 30, and March 31, 2006. The impact on both basic and diluted loss per share for the three and six months ended June 30, 2006 was $0.03 and $0.06 per share, respectively.

The Company issues stock options to its employees, directors and certain consultants and provides the right to purchase stock pursuant to approved stock option and employee stock purchase programs. Prior to the adoption of SFAS 123(R), the Company elected to follow Accounting Principles Board Opinion No. 25, “Accounting for Stock Options Issued to Employees” (“APB No. 25”) and related interpretations (collectively “APB No. 25”), in accounting for its stock option plans. Under APB No. 25, when the exercise price of an employee stock option is less than the market price of the underlying stock on the date of grant, compensation expense is recognized. All options granted under these plans had an exercise price equal to the fair market value of the underlying Common Stock on the date of grant.

Certain stock options issued to non-employee consultants were accounted for under SFAS No. 123 “Accounting for Stock Based Compensation” using the fair value method. A stock compensation charge of $148 and $195 in respect of 96,000 fully vested options granted to non-employee consultants is reflected in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations for the three and six- month periods ended June 30, 2005, as required under APB No.25. There was no similar charge for the three-and six month periods ended June 30, 2006. The fair value for these options was estimated on the date of grant using a Black-Scholes option pricing model with the following weighted-average assumptions: risk-free interest rate of 2%; dividend yield of 0%; volatility factor of 80%; and a weighted-average expected life of the options of four years. 

The following table illustrates the pro forma effect on net income and net income per share for the three-and six month periods ended June 30, 2005, had we applied the fair value recognition provisions of SFAS No. 123 as expenses:

 

		Six months ended			Three months ended
		June 30,			June 30,
		2005			2005
Net loss as reported		$	(1,589	)	$	(2,216	)
Add (deduct): Total stock-based employee compensation credit (expense) determined under fair value based method for all awards, net of related tax effects		$	(919	)	$	457
Pro forma net loss		$	(2,508	)	$	(1,759	)
Income (loss) per share:
Basic and diluted as reported		$	(0.08	)	$	(0.12	)
Basic and diluted pro forma		$	(0.13	)	$	(0.09	)

NOTE 8:    REORGANIZATION AND SEVERANCE CHARGE

Reorganization and restructuring plans implemented in 2005 resulted in a total charge of $3,200, of which 1,700 were recorded in the first six months of 2005. The charge arose in connection with the decision to restructure the Company’s corporate management, reduce overhead and consolidate its activities. Included in the total charges were severance charges and employee related liabilities arising in connection with a head-count reduction of nine employees and provision for future operating lease charges on idle facilities.

 

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NOTES TO THE INTERIM CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - CONTINUED

(U.S. dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

The Company was required to make, and is required to review, certain estimates and assumptions in assessing the under-utilized building operating lease charges arising from the reduction in facility requirements. The Company takes into account current market conditions and the ability of the Company to either exit the lease property or sub-let the property in determining the estimates and assumptions used. The Company expects to revise its assumptions quarterly, as appropriate, in respect of future vacancy rates and sublet rents in light of current market conditions and the applicable discount rate based on projected interest rates.

There was no additional charge to the statements of operations during the three-and six month periods ended June 30, 2006.

The balance as of June 30, 2006 of the restructuring and other charges is $3,176, of which $1,209 is included in accrued expenses and other payables and $1,967 is included in long term accrued liabilities.

 

NOTE 9:    RECENTLY ISSUED ACCOUNTING STANDARDS

 

In February 2006, the FASB issued SFAS No. 155, “Accounting for Certain Hybrid Financial Instruments” (“FAS 155”), which amends SFAS No. 133, “Accounting for Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities” (“FAS 133”) and SFAS No. 140, “Accounting for Transfers and Servicing of Financial Assets and Extinguishments of Liabilities” (“FAS 140”). FAS 155 provides guidance to simplify the accounting for certain hybrid instruments by permitting fair value remeasurement for any hybrid financial instrument that contains an embedded derivative, as well as, clarifies that beneficial interests in securitized financial assets are subject to FAS 133. In addition, FAS 155 eliminates a restriction on the passive derivative instruments that a qualifying special-purpose entity may hold under FAS 140. FAS 155 is effective for all financial instruments acquired, issued or subject to a new basis occurring after the beginning of an entity’s first fiscal year that begins after September 15, 2006. We believe that the adoption of this statement will not have a material effect on our financial condition or results of operations.

   In March 2006, the FASB issued SFAS No. 156, “Accounting for Servicing of Financial Assets” (“FAS 156”), which amends SFAS No. 140. FAS 156 provides guidance addressing the recognition and measurement of separately recognized servicing assets and liabilities, common with mortgage securitization activities, and provides an approach to simplify efforts to obtain hedge accounting treatment. FAS 156 is effective for all separately recognized servicing assets and liabilities acquired or issued after the beginning of an entity’s fiscal year that begins after September 15, 2006, with early adoption being permitted. We believe that the adoption of this statement will not have a material effect on our financial condition or results of operations.

In July 2006, the FASB issued FASB Interpretation 48, "Accounting for Income Tax Uncertainties" ("FIN 48"). FIN 48 defines the threshold for recognizing the benefits of tax return positions in the financial statements as “more-likely-than-not" to be sustained by the taxing authority. The recently issued literature also provides guidance on derecognition, measurement and classification of income tax uncertainties, along with any related interest and penalties. FIN 48 also includes guidance concerning accounting for income tax uncertainties in interim periods and increases the level of disclosures associated with any recorded income tax uncertainties. FIN 48 is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2006. The differences between the amounts recognized in the statements of financial position prior to the adoption of FIN 48 and the amounts reported after adoption will be accounted for as a cumulative-effect adjustment recorded to the beginning balance of retained earnings. Because the guidance was recently issued, the Company has not yet determined the impact, if any, of adoption of the provisions of FIN 48 on its financial position, results of operations and cash flows.

 

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Item 4.    CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES 

As of the end of the period covered by this report, we carried out an evaluation, under the supervision and with the participation of our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, of the effectiveness of the design and operation of our disclosure controls and procedures. Based on this evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures are effective in timely alerting them to material information required to be included in this report.

 

There has been no change in our internal control over financial reporting that occurred during our most recent fiscal quarter that has materially affected or is reasonably likely to materially affect our internal control over financial reporting.

PART II.    OTHER INFORMATION

Item 1.    LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

The Company is not party to any litigation or other legal proceedings that the Company believes could reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, results of operations and financial condition. 

Item 1A.    RISK FACTORS

This Form 10-Q contains forward-looking statements concerning our future products, expenses, revenue, liquidity and cash needs as well as our plans and strategies. These forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and we assume no obligation to update this information. Numerous factors could cause our actual results to differ significantly from the results described in these forward-looking statements, including the following risk factors.

 

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There are no material changes to the Risk Factors described under the title “Factors That May Affect Future Performance” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2005 other than (1) changes to the Risk Factor below entitled “The markets in which we operate are highly competitive, and as a result we could experience a loss of sales, lower prices and lower revenues” (2) changes to the Risk Factor below entitled “We rely significantly on revenue derived from a limited number of customers” (3) changes to the Risk Factor below entitled “Because we have significant international operations, we may be subject to political, economic and other conditions relating to our international operations that could increase our operating expenses and disrupt our revenues and business” (4) changes to the Risk Factor below entitled “We may dispose of or discontinue existing product lines and technology developments, which may adversely impact our future results” and (5) changes to the Risk Factor below entitled: “Our restructuring efforts in 2003 and 2005 and the divestment of our GPS technology and related business could disrupt the operation of our business, distract our management from focusing on revenue-generating efforts, result in the erosion of employee morale, and impair our ability to respond rapidly to growth opportunities in the future”.

 

The markets in which we operate are highly competitive, and as a result we could experience a loss of sales, lower prices and lower revenue.

The markets for the products in which our technology is incorporated are highly competitive; for example, semiconductor customers may choose to adopt a multi-chip, off-the-shelf chip solution versus licensing or using highly integrated chips that embed our technologies.  Aggressive competition could result in substantial declines in the prices that we are able to charge for our intellectual property. Many of our competitors are large companies that have significantly greater financial and other resources than we have. The following factors may have an impact on our competitiveness:

·

Microprocessor IP providers, such as ARM , MIPS , Tensilica , ARC, recently began to offer DSP extensions to their IP.

·

SATA IP market is highly standardized with several vendors offering similar products, leading to price pressure for both licensing and royalty revenue.

·

Our video solution is software based and competes with hardware implementation offered by companies such as Hantro and other software solution offered by Hantro, Sci Works and Imagination Technologies.

In addition, we may face increased competition from smaller, niche semiconductor design companies in the future. Some of our customers may also decide to satisfy their needs through in-house design. We compete on the basis of price, product quality, design cycle time, reliability, performance, customer support, name recognition and reputation, and financial strength. Our inability to compete effectively on these basis could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Our quarterly operating results fluctuate from quarter to quarter due to a variety of factors, including our lengthy sales cycle, and may not be a meaningful indicator of future performance.

In some quarters our operating results could be below the expectations of securities analysts and investors, which could cause our stock price to fall. Factors that may affect our quarterly results of operations in the future include, among other things:

• the timing of the introduction of new or enhanced technologies by us and our competitors, as well as the market acceptance of such technologies;

• the timing and volume of orders and production by our customers, as well as fluctuations in royalty revenues resulting from fluctuations in unit shipments by our licensees;

• our lengthy sales cycle;

• the gain or loss of significant licensees;

• delays in the commercialization of end products that incorporate our technology;

• changes in our pricing policies and those of our competitors; and

• restructuring, asset impairment and related charges.

We rely significantly on revenue derived from a limited number of customers.

 

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We expect that a limited number of customers, varying in identity from period-to-period, will account for a substantial portion of our revenues in any period. One customer accounted for 30% and another customer accounted for 10% of our total revenues for the first half of 2006. Three customers accounted for more than 10% of revenues in the second quarter of 2006. Moreover, license agreements for our DSP cores have not historically provided for substantial ongoing license payments. Significant portions of our anticipated future revenue, therefore, will likely depend upon our success in attracting new customers or expanding our relationships with existing customers. Our ability to succeed in these efforts will depend on a variety of factors, including the performance, quality, breadth and depth of our current and future products, as well as our sales and marketing skills. In addition, some of our licensees may decide to satisfy their needs through in-house design and production. Our failure to obtain future customer licenses would impede our future revenue growth and could materially harm our business.

We depend on market acceptance of third-party semiconductor intellectual property.

The semiconductor intellectual property (SIP) industry is a relatively new and emerging trend. Our future growth will depend on the level of acceptance by the market of our third-party licensable intellectual property model, the variety of intellectual property offerings available on the market, and a shift in customer preference away from the traditional approach of licensing standalone DSPs, and towards licensing highly integrated application platforms incorporating all the necessary hardware and software for their target applications. These trends that will enable our growth are largely beyond our control. Semiconductor customers may choose to adopt a multi-chip, off-the-shelf chip solution versus licensing or using highly integrated chips that embed our technologies. Semiconductor customers may also decide to design programmable DSP core products in-house rather than license them from us. If the market shifts and third-party SIP is no longer desired by our customers, our business, results of operations and financial condition could be materially harmed.

Because our IP solutions are components of end products, if semiconductor companies and electronic equipment manufacturers do not incorporate our solutions into their end products or if the end products of our customers do not achieve market acceptance, we may not be able to generate adequate sales of our products.

We do not sell our IP solutions directly to end-users; we license our technology primarily to semiconductor companies and electronic equipment manufacturers, who then incorporate our technology into the products they sell. As a result, we rely upon our customers to incorporate our technology into their end products at the design stage. Once our customer incorporates a competitor’s technology into its end product, it becomes significantly more difficult for us to sell our technology to that customer because changing suppliers involves significant cost, time, effort and risk for the customer. As a result, we may incur significant expenditures on the development of a new technology without any assurance that our customer will select our technology for incorporation into its own product and without this “design win,” it becomes significantly difficult to sell our IP solutions. Moreover, even after our customer agrees to incorporate our technology into its end products, the design cycle is long and may be delayed due to factors beyond our control which may result in the end product incorporating our technology not to reach the market until long after the initial “design win” with the our customer. From initial product design-in to volume production, many factors could impact the timing and/or amount of sales actually realized from the design-in. These factors include, but are not limited to, changes in the competitive position of our technology, our customers’ financial stability, and our ability to ship products according to our customers’ schedule.

Further, because we do not control the business practices of our customers, we do not influence the degree to which they promote our technology or set the prices at which they sell products incorporating our technology. We cannot assure you that our customers will devote satisfactory efforts to promote our IP solutions. In addition, our unit royalties from licenses are totally dependent upon the success of our customers in introducing products incorporating our technology and the success of those products in the marketplace. The primary customers for our products are semiconductor design and manufacturing companies, system OEMs and electronic equipment manufacturers, particularly in the telecommunications field. These industries are highly cyclical and have been subject to significant economic downturns at various times, particularly in recent periods. These downturns are characterized by production overcapacity and reduced revenues, which at times may encourage semiconductor companies or electronic product manufacturers to reduce their expenditure on our technology. If we do not retain our current customers and continue to attract new customers, our business may be harmed.

We depend on a limited number of key personnel who would be difficult to replace.

Our success depends to a significant extent upon certain of our key employees and senior management; the loss of the service of these employees could materially harm our business. Competition for skilled employees in our field is intense. We cannot assure you that in the future we will be successful in attracting and retaining the required personnel.

The sales cycle for our IP solutions is lengthy, which makes forecasting of our customer orders and revenues difficult.

 

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The sales cycle for our IP solutions is lengthy, often lasting six months to a year. Our customers generally conduct significant technical evaluations, including customer trials, of our technology as well as competing technologies prior to making a purchasing decision. In addition, purchasing decisions may also be delayed because of a customer’s internal budget approval process. Because of the lengthy sales cycle and the size of customer orders, if orders forecasted for a specific customer for a particular period do not occur in that period, our revenues and operating results for that particular quarter could suffer. Moreover, a portion of our expenses related to an anticipated order is fixed and difficult to reduce or change, which may further impact our operating results for a particular period.

We may dispose of or discontinue existing product lines and technology developments, which may adversely impact our future results.

 

On an ongoing basis, we evaluate our various product offerings and technology developments in order to determine whether any should be discontinued or, to the extent possible, divested. For example, in connection with our reorganization and restructuring plans in 2003 and 2005, we ceased manufacturing of our hard IP products and certain non-strategic technology areas. In June 2006, we divested our GPS technology and related business. We cannot guarantee that we have correctly forecasted, or will correctly forecast in the future, the right product lines and technology developments to dispose or discontinue or that our decision to dispose of or discontinue various investments, products lines and technology developments is prudent if market conditions change. In addition, there are no assurances that the discontinuance of various product lines will reduce our operating expenses or will not cause us to incur material charges associated with such decision. Furthermore, the discontinuance of existing product lines entails various risks, including the risk that we will not be able to find a purchaser for a product line or the purchase price obtained will not be equal to the book value of the assets for the product line. Other risks include managing the expectations of, and maintaining good relations with, our customers who previously purchased products from our disposed or discontinued product lines, which could prevent us from selling other products to them in the future. We may also incur other significant liabilities and costs associated with our disposal or discontinuance of product lines, including employee severance costs and excess facilities costs.

Our restructuring efforts in 2003 and 2005 and the divestment of our GPS technology and related business could disrupt the operation of our business, distract our management from focusing on revenue-generating efforts, result in the erosion of employee morale, and impair our ability to respond rapidly to growth opportunities in the future.

 

We implemented reorganization and restructuring plans in 2003 and 2005, including personnel reduction of 9 people in 2005 and 40 people in 2003. In June 2006, we divested our GPS technology and related business, including the transfer of 25 employees. The employee reductions and changes in connection with our restructuring activities could result in an erosion of morale, and affect the focus and productivity of our remaining employees, including those directly responsible for revenue generation, which in turn may adversely affect our revenue in the future. Additionally, employees directly affected by the reductions may seek future employment with our business partners, customers or competitors. Such matters could divert the attention of our employees, including management, away from our operations, harm productivity, harm our reputation and increase our expenses.

Because our IP solutions are complex, the detection of errors in our products may be delayed, and if we deliver products with defects, our credibility will be harmed, the sales and market acceptance of our products may decrease and product liability claims may be made against us.

 

Our IP solutions are complex and may contain errors, defects and bugs when introduced. If we deliver products with errors, defects or bugs, our credibility and the market acceptance and sales of our products could be significantly harmed. Furthermore, the nature of our products may also delay the detection of any such error or defect. If our products contain errors, defects and bugs, then we may be required to expend significant capital and resources to alleviate these problems. This could result in the diversion of technical and other resources from our other development efforts. Any actual or perceived problems or delays may also adversely affect our ability to attract or retain customers. Furthermore, the existence of any defects, errors or failure in our products could lead to product liability claims or lawsuits against us or against our customers. A successful product liability claim could result in substantial cost and divert management’s attention and resources, which would have a negative impact on our financial condition and results of operations.

Our operating results may fluctuate significantly due to the cyclicality of the semiconductor industry, which could adversely affect the market price of our stock.

 

Our primary operations are in the semiconductor industry, which is cyclical and subject to rapid technological change and evolving industry standards. From time to time, the semiconductor industry has experienced significant downturns such as the one we experienced during the 2000 and 2001 periods and from which the industry is slowly recovering. These downturns are characterized by diminished product demand, excess customer inventories, accelerated erosion of prices and excess production capacity. These factors could cause substantial fluctuations in our revenues and in our results of operations. The downturn we inexperienced during the 2000 and 2001 periods was, and future downturns in the semiconductor industry may be, severe and prolonged. Also the slow recovery from the downturn during the 2000 and 2001 periods and the failure of this industry to fully recover or any future downturn could seriously impact our revenue and harm our business, financial condition and results of operations. The semiconductor industry also periodically experiences increased demand and production capacity constraints, which may affect our ability to ship products in future periods. Our financial results may vary significantly as a result of the general conditions in the semiconductor industry, which could cause our stock price to decline.

 

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Our success will depend on our ability to successfully manage our geographically dispersed operations.

Most of our employees are located in Israel and Ireland. Accordingly, our ability to compete successfully will depend in part on the ability of a limited number of key executives located in geographically dispersed offices to integrate management, address the needs of our customers and respond to changes in our markets. If we are unable to effectively manage and integrate our remote operations, our business may be materially harmed.

Our operations in Israel may be adversely affected by instability in the Middle East region.

One of our principal research and development facilities is located in, and our executive officers and some of our directors are residents of, Israel. Although substantially all of our sales currently are being made to customers outside Israel, we are nonetheless directly influenced by the political, economic and military conditions affecting Israel, including the current conflict with Lebanon. Any major hostilities involving Israel could significantly harm our business, operating results and financial condition.

In addition, certain of our officers and employees are currently obligated to perform annual reserve duty in the Israel Defense Forces and are subject to being called to active military duty at any time. Although we have operated effectively under these requirements since our inception, we cannot predict the effect of these obligations on the company in the future. Our operations could be disrupted by the absence, for a significant period, of one or more of our key officers or key employees due to military service.

Our research and development expenses may increase if the grants we currently receive from the Israeli and Irish governments are reduced or withheld.

We currently receive research grants from programs of the Chief Scientist of Israel and under the funding programs of Enterprise Ireland and Invest Northern Ireland. To be eligible for these grants, we must meet certain development conditions and comply with periodic reporting obligations. Although we have met such conditions in the past, should we fail to meet such conditions in the future our research grants may be repayable, reduced or withheld. The repayment or reduction of such research grants may increase our research and development expenses which in turn may reduce our operating income.

We are exposed to fluctuations in currency exchange rates.

 

A significant portion of our business is conducted outside the United States. Although most of our revenue is transacted in U.S. Dollars, we may be exposed to currency exchange fluctuations in the future as business practices evolve and we are forced to transact business in local currencies. Moreover, a portion of our expenses in Israel and Europe are paid in Israeli currency (NIS) and Euros, which subjects us to the risks of foreign currency fluctuations. Our primary expenses paid in NIS and Euro are employee salaries and lease payments on our Israeli and Dublin facilities. In the future, we may use derivative instruments in order to minimize the effects of currency fluctuations, but any hedging positions may not succeed in minimizing our foreign currency fluctuation risks.

Because we have significant international operations, we may be subject to political, economic and other conditions relating to our international operations that could increase our operating expenses and disrupt our revenues and business.

 

Approximately 53% of our total revenues for the first half of 2006 and 65% of our total revenues in 2005 are derived from license agreements with customers located outside of the United States. We expect that international customers will continue to account for a significant portion of our revenue for the foreseeable future. As a result, the occurrence of any negative international political, economic or geographic events could result in significant revenue shortfalls. These shortfalls could cause our business, financial condition and results of operations to be harmed. Some of the risks of doing business internationally include:

·

unexpected changes in regulatory requirements;

·

fluctuations in the exchange rate for the United States dollar;

·

imposition of tariffs and other barriers and restrictions;

·

burdens of complying with a variety of foreign laws;

·

political and economic instability; and

·

changes in diplomatic and trade relationships.

 

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If we are unable to meet the changing needs of our end-users or to address evolving market demands, our business may be harmed.

The markets for programmable DSP cores and application IP are characterized by rapidly changing technology, emerging markets and new and developing end-user needs, requiring significant expenditure for research and development. We cannot assure you that we will be able to introduce systems and solutions that reflect prevailing industry standards on a timely basis, to meet the specific technical requirements of our end-users or to avoid significant losses due to rapid decreases in market prices of our products, and our failure to do so may seriously harm our business. For example, we have already licensed our multimedia solutions; however, this technology has not yet been deployed by our licensees to their end markets and may be subject to further modifications to address evolving market demands. In addition, the reduction in the number of our employees in connection with our recent restructuring efforts could adversely affect our ability to attract or retain customers who require certain research and development capabilities from their IP providers.

We may seek to expand our business through acquisitions that could result in diversion of resources and extra expenses.

We may pursue acquisitions of businesses, products and technologies, or establish joint venture arrangements in the future that could expand our business. The negotiation of potential acquisitions or joint ventures, as well as the integration of acquired or jointly developed businesses, technologies or products could cause diversion of management’s time and our resources. We may not be able to successfully integrate acquired businesses or joint ventures with our operations. If we were to make any acquisition or enter into a joint venture, we may not receive the intended benefits of the acquisition or joint venture. If future acquisitions or joint ventures disrupt our operations, or if we have difficulty integrating the businesses or technologies we acquire, our business, financial condition and results of operations could suffer.

We may not be able to adequately protect our intellectual property.

Our success and ability to compete depend in large part upon the protection of our proprietary technologies. We rely on a combination of patent, copyright, trademark, trade secret, mask work and other intellectual property rights, confidentiality procedures and licensing arrangements to establish and protect our proprietary rights. These agreements and measures may not be sufficient to protect our technology from third-party infringement or to protect us from the claims of others. As a result, we face risks associated with our patent position, including the potential need to engage in significant legal proceedings to enforce our patents, the possibility that the validity or enforceability of our patents may be denied, the possibility that third parties will be able to compete against us without infringing our patents and the possibility that our products may infringe patent rights of third parties.

Our trade names or trademarks may be registered or utilized by third parties in countries other than those in which we have registered them, impairing our ability to enter and compete in these markets. If we were forced to change any of our brand names, we could lose a significant amount of our brand equity.

Our business will suffer if we are sued for infringement of the intellectual property rights of third parties or if we cannot obtain licenses to these rights on commercially acceptable terms.

Although we are not currently involved in any litigation, we are subject to the risk of adverse claims and litigation alleging infringement of the intellectual property rights of others. There are a large number of patents held by others, including our competitors, pertaining to the broad areas in which we are active. We have not, and cannot reasonably, investigate all such patents. From time to time, we have become aware of patents in our technology areas and have sought legal counsel regarding the validity of such patents and their impact on how we operate our business, and we will continue to seek such counsel when appropriate in the future. Claims against us may require us to enter into license arrangements or result in protracted and costly litigation, regardless of the merits of these claims. Any necessary licenses may not be available or, if available, may not be obtainable on commercially reasonable terms. If we cannot obtain necessary licenses on commercially reasonable terms, we may be forced to stop licensing our technology, and our business would be seriously harmed.

Our business depends on our customers and their suppliers obtaining required complementary components.

Some of the raw materials, components and subassemblies included in the products manufactured by our OEM customers are obtained from a limited group of suppliers. Supply disruptions, shortages or termination of any of these sources could have an adverse effect on our business and results of operations due to the delay or discontinuance of orders for products containing our IP, especially our DSP cores, until those necessary components are available.

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The future growth of our business depends in part on our ability to license to system OEMs and small-to-medium-sized semiconductor companies directly and to expand our sales geographically.

Historically, a substantial portion of our licensing revenues has been derived in any period from a relatively small number of licensees. Because of the substantial license fees we charge, our customers tend to be large semiconductor companies or vertically integrated system OEMs. Part of our current growth strategy is to broaden the adoption of our products by small and mid-size companies by offering different versions of our products, targeted at these companies. In addition we plan to continue expanding our sales to include additional geographic areas. Asia, in particular, is a region we have targeted for growth. If we are unable to develop and market effectively our intellectual property through these models, our revenues will continue to be dependent on a smaller number of licensees and a less geographically dispersed pattern of licensees, which could materially harm our business and results of operations.

We will be exposed to risks relating to evaluations of internal control over financial reporting required by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.

We have spent and are spending a substantial amount of management time and resources to comply with changing laws, regulations and standards relating to corporate governance and public disclosure, including the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, new SEC regulations and the NASDAQ Stock Exchange rules. In particular, Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 requires management’s annual review and evaluation of our internal control systems, and attestations as to the effectiveness of these systems by our independent public accounting firm. We have expended and expect to continue to expend significant resources and management time documenting and testing our internal control systems and procedures. If we fail to maintain the adequacy of our internal controls, as such standards are modified, supplemented or amended from time to time, we may not be able to ensure that we can conclude on an ongoing basis that we have effective internal control over financial reporting in accordance with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Failure to maintain an effective internal control environment could have a material adverse effect on the market price of our stock.

Newly adopted accounting standard that requires companies to expense stock options will result in a decrease in our earnings and our stock price may decline.

 

Our adoption of the accounting standard SFAS 123(R) as of January 1, 2006 requires us to account for share-based compensation transactions using a fair-value-based method and record as compensation expense in our consolidated statement of income the unvested portion of previously granted awards that remain outstanding as of, and new options granted after, January 1, 2006. The adoption of this new accounting standard has had a significant impact on our results of operations as our reported earnings decreased as a result of including these non-cash equity-based compensation expenses. Furthermore, if we reduce or alter our use of stock-based compensation to minimize the recognition of these expenses or if we are unable to introduce alternative methods of compensation, our ability to recruit, motivate and retain employees may be impaired, which could put us at a significant disadvantage in the employee marketplace relative to our competitors.

The Israeli tax benefits that we currently receive and the government programs in which we participate require us to meet certain conditions and may be terminated or reduced in the future, which could increase our costs.

We enjoy certain tax benefits in Israel, particularly as a result of the “Approved Enterprise” status of our facilities and programs. To maintain our eligibility for these tax benefits, we must continue to meet certain conditions, relating principally to adherence to the investment program filed with the Investment Center of the Israeli Ministry of Industry and Trade and to periodic reporting obligations. We believe that we will be able to continue to meet such conditions. Should we fail to meet such conditions in the future, however, these benefits would be cancelled and we would be subject to corporate tax in Israel at the standard rate of 31%-36% and could be required to refund tax benefits already received. In addition, we cannot assure you that these tax benefits will be continued in the future at their current levels or otherwise. The termination or reduction of certain programs and tax benefits (particularly benefits available to us as a result of the Approved Enterprise status of our facilities and programs) or a requirement to refund tax benefits already received may seriously harm our business, operating results and financial condition.

Our corporate tax rate may increase, which could adversely impact our cash flow, financial condition and results of operations.

We have significant operations in Israel and the Republic of Ireland and a substantial portion of our taxable income historically has been generated there. Currently, some of our Israeli and Irish subsidiaries are taxed at rates substantially lower than the United States of America (U.S.) tax rates. Although there is no expectation of any changes to Israeli and Irish tax law, if our Israeli and Irish subsidiaries were no longer to qualify for these lower tax rates or if the applicable tax laws were rescinded or changed, our operating results could be materially adversely affected. In addition, because our Israeli and Irish operations are owned by subsidiaries of a U.S. corporation, distributions to the U.S. corporation, and in certain circumstances undistributed income of the subsidiaries, may be subject to U.S. tax. Moreover, if U.S. or other authorities were to change applicable tax laws or successfully challenge the manner in which our subsidiaries’ profits are currently recognized, our overall taxes could increase, and our business, cash flow, financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.

 

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Item 4.  SUBMISSION OF MATTERS TO A VOTE OF SECURITY HOLDERS

 

The Annual Meeting of Stockholders was held on July 18, 2006. Holders of an aggregate of 19,149,408 shares of common stock at the close of business on May 22, 2006 were entitled to vote at the meeting and the holders of 13,985,285 shares of common stock were present or represented by proxy at the meeting. At such meeting, the Company's stockholders voted as follows:

Proposal 1  

The following directors were elected at the meeting to serve for a one-year term:

 

	For		Withheld
Eliyahu Ayalon	12,127,820		1,857,465
Zimon Limon	13,670,157		315,128
Bruce A. Mann	11,848,872		2,136,413
Peter McManaman	12,098,231		1,877,054
Sven-Christer Nillsson	13,814,828		170,457
Louis Silver	13,744,474		240,811
Dan Tocalty	13,812,622		172,663

   

Proposal 2

Approval of an increase of 500,000 shares authorized for issuance under our 2002 Employee Stock Purchase Plan.

For     8,082,176

Against     245,574

Abstained     12,085

Broker Non-Vote     5,645,450

     

Proposal 3

To ratify the selection of Kost Forer Gabby & Kassierer, a member of Ernst & Young Global, as independent auditors of the company for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2006:  

For     13,964,716

Against     10,719

Abstained     9,850

Broker Non-Vote      0

       

The proposals above are described in detail in the Company's definitive proxy statement dated June 1, 2006, for the Annual Meeting of Stockholders held on July 18, 2006.

Item 6.    EXHIBITS 

Exhibit No.	Description
10.21	CEVA, Inc. 2006 Executive Bonus Plan (Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 filed with the Current Report of Form 8-K on May 30, 2006
10.22	Form of Option Agreement under the CEVA, Inc. 2000 Stock Incentive Plan
10.23	Form of Israeli Option Agreement under the CEVA, Inc. 2000 Stock Incentive Plan
10.24	Form of Option Agreement under the CEVA, Inc. 2002 Stock Incentive Plan
10.25	Form of Israeli Option Agreement under the CEVA, Inc. 2002 Stock Incentive Plan
10.26	Form of Option Agreement under the 2003 Director Stock Option Plan
31.1	Rule 13a-14(a)/15d-14(a) Certification of Chief Executive Officer
31.2	Rule 13a-14(a)/15d-14(a) Certification of Chief Financial Officer
32	Section 1350 Certification of Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer

 

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