In an apparent effort to raise cash, AMD is looking to sell its Lone Star Campus in Austin, Texas.
The company hopes the sale will raise anywhere between $150 and $200 million, and the cash will be used for chip development. AMD spokesman Drew Prairie told Reuters that the plan is to reach a deal in the second quarter of 2013.
"There are favorable economic conditions in the part of Austin where the campus is located," Prairie said. "Contingent on finding an investor who wants to do a multiyear lease-back, it's a good opportunity for us to unlock the value of the real estate to fund operations."
Spoken like a true real estate broker, but selling or even leasing a 58-acre facility in today's economy could prove tricky.
On Tuesday, AMD CEO Rory Read told investors that Thanksgiving sales were encouraging for the company, but he did not make any predictions for the rest of the holiday season, saying it is still “too early to call.”
Read added that he does not expect the PC market to recover over the next several quarters, which is bad news for the industry, but particularly AMD, which relies on the PC market for about 85 percent of its revenue. Unlike Intel or Nvidia, AMD does not have much in the way of server or ARM revenue to rely on in a weak PC market.
More here.