Cree changes its name to Wolfspeed and will be listed on the New York Stock Exchange on October 4

Last night, Cree | Wolfspeed announced that it will end its Nasdaq trading on October 1 and will officially start trading on the New York Stock Exchange on October 4 under the ticker symbol "WOLF". At the same time, the company's name will be changed from Cree, Inc. to Wolfspeed, Inc.

Cree said the transition marks an important milestone and Cree will continue to lead the industry transformation from silicon (Si) to silicon carbide (SiC).

In 2019 and 2021, Cree completed the sale of its lighting and LED businesses and completely transformed into a company focusing on wide bandgap semiconductor products. Its main businesses include the sale of substrates, epitaxial wafers, power or RF device products, and the provision of gallium nitride RF device foundry services, covering all aspects of wide bandgap semiconductors.

In 2019, Cree announced that it would invest $1 billion over five years to expand SiC and GaN production capacity in the United States, including an investment of $450 million to build an 8-inch wafer factory in Marcy, New York, and an investment of $450 million to expand and renovate a 6-inch wafer and substrate material factory in Durham, North Carolina, its headquarters, into a super substrate material factory. Another $100 million will be used for working capital.

In October of the same year, it was announced that the first batch of 8-inch SiC wafer samples had been successfully prepared at the Albany campus of the New York State Polytechnic Institute.

Cree's 8-inch SiC wafer factory began to move in equipment in April 2021 and is expected to start production in 2022. It is expected that by 2024, when it reaches full production, it will reach 30 times the capacity of 2017, and the products must meet automotive standards. Cree said that in 2024, the 8-inch SiC wafer factory will be planned to reach full production; the proportion of SiC and GaN device product business will exceed that of the material business; revenue will reach US$1.5 billion, and EBIT will be 375 million yuan.  

Not long ago, Cree announced its fourth quarter financial report for fiscal year 2021 ending June 27, with revenue of US$145.8 million, a year-on-year increase of 35% and a month-on-month increase of 6%, slightly higher than analysts' expectations of US$145.17 million. Looking ahead to the next quarter, Cree's target revenue is between US$144 million and US$154 million.

Gregg Lowe, CEO of the company, said, "Strong revenue in the quarter was driven by customers ramping up production earlier and more significantly than initially expected. We continue to capture growth and conversion opportunities in our equipment segment, further establishing our leadership position in the silicon carbide industry."

Gregg Lowe further revealed that the company is on track to complete the world's largest silicon carbide plant in early 2022, enabling it to take full advantage of growth opportunities in the coming decades.

Cree previously announced that it would expand its existing long-term silicon carbide wafer supply agreement with STMicroelectronics, and Cree will supply 6-inch silicon carbide wafers to the latter in the next few years.