“The rapid meltdown of GT Advanced Technologies (GTAT) remains shrouded in mystery,” Dan Gallagher reports for The Wall Street Journal. “One thing is clear: it is a stark example of what can happen when expectations for a company get out of control and are based on potential gains from a single partner.”
“GT’s Monday filing for bankruptcy protection seemed to surprise everyone. Even analysts who were bearish on the maker of sapphire material due to concerns about cash flow figured the company would be able to raise more capital. But things deteriorated quickly, as the company seemed to burn though about $248 million in cash in a single quarter,” Gallagher reports. “That may have led to the company’s filing, since its cash, at $85 million, was below a $125 million trigger point that would allow Apple to demand repayment of about $440 million in loans it had advanced. Apple had agreed to lend GT a total of $578 million to help get a large sapphire factory in Arizona up and running. The tech giant reportedly withheld the last $139 million payment it was due to make, although it isn’t clear why.”
Gallagher reports, “What is obvious is that GT effectively bet the house on a new technology with a new business model and made itself dependent on a single customer—Apple.”
Read more in the full article here.
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