Newport Corp. Completes Acquisition of Micro Robotics Systems

IRVINE, Calif., Feb. 20 -- Newport Corp. announced it has completed its acquisition of Micro Robotics Systems Inc. (MRSI), a privately held manufacturer of high-precision, fully automated assembly and dispensing systems for the fiber optic communications, microwave and semiconductor equipment markets.

The purchase price totaled $65 million, composed of Newport stock and stock options valued at $50 million and $15 million cash. At the time of the closing, MRSI held cash of approximately $10 million dollars, which partially offsets the cash paid, resulting in a net cash outlay for Newport of approximately $5 million. The additional shares issued to MRSI shareholders and option holders are expected to increase Newport's diluted shares by approximately 0.8 million in the first quarter of 2002 and 1.6 million for the full year, Newport said.

"This acquisition moves Newport forward in our quest to become the leading single-source supplier of test, measurement and automation solutions for the fiber optic communications market," said Robert G. Deuster, Newport's chairman and CEO. "We are combining Newport's position as the leading supplier of automated fiber attachment systems for photonic markets with MRSI's position as the premiere designer and manufacturer of highly sophisticated, high-precision chip assembly, dispense and bonding systems. This combination will provide our customers with a complete automation solution from one source."