Descriptions of EBITDA excluding the effects of other items, Adjusted EBITDA, adjusted operating earnings and adjusted net earnings and the reconciliations to our GAAP results are included in the tables and notes attached to this press release.

Product Group Revenues

The company’s net sales figures for the first quarter of 2015 were as follows:

• Microcontrollers net sales were $235 million, compared to $232 million in the fourth quarter of 2014 and $223 million in the first quarter of last year. On a year-over-year basis, Microcontroller revenues benefitted from increased sales of its 32-bit microcontroller products into distribution and higher sales of applications processors into the automotive market.
• Digital Networking net sales were $214 million, compared to $217 million in the fourth quarter of 2014 and $249 million in the first quarter of last year. Networking net sales declined compared to the prior year due to lower sales to certain service provider customers and lower sales into distribution.
• Automotive MCU net sales were $307 million, compared to $271 million in the fourth quarter of 2014 and $304 million in the first quarter of last year. Automotive MCU sales benefitted from growth in all key geographies and in distribution due to growth in vehicle semiconductor content and higher worldwide automotive production.
• Analog and Sensors net sales were $207 million, compared to $193 million in the fourth quarter of 2014 and $198 million in the first quarter of last year. Analog and Sensors sales benefitted from increased vehicle semiconductor content and growth in worldwide automotive production.
• RF net sales, which include sales of power amplifiers to the wireless infrastructure market, were $184 million, compared to $164 million in the fourth quarter of 2014 and $113 million in the first quarter of last year. RF sales increased due to increased spending on 3G and 4G wireless networks, particularly in China.
• Other net sales were $22 million, compared to $26 million in the fourth quarter of 2014 and $40 million in the first quarter of last year. On a year-over-year basis, intellectual property revenues declined and we experienced lower sales into the wireless handset market, consistent with the company’s prior decision to exit that market.

Other Financial Information

• Capital Expenditures for the quarter were $50 million;
• Cash and Cash Equivalents were $501 million, inclusive of debt redemption activities during the quarter totaling $268 million; and
• Adjusted EBITDA* for the latest twelve months ended April 3, 2015 was $1.15 billion.

*Adjusted for various items as indicated and defined in Note 1 to the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Information attached to this press release.

Second Quarter 2015 Outlook

For the second quarter of 2015, the company expects:

• Net sales to be between $1.155 billion and $1.205 billion;
• Gross margins to increase modestly on a sequential basis;
• Operating expenses to decline on a sequential basis;
• Adjusted earnings per share to increase on a sequential basis.

Conference Call and Webcast

Freescale's quarterly earnings call is scheduled to begin at 4:00 p.m. Central Daylight Time on April 23, 2015. The company will offer a live webcast of the conference call over the Internet at www.freescale.com/investor.

Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements relate to our business strategy, goals and expectations concerning future revenues, operations, margins, profitability, liquidity and capital resources. Although we believe the assumptions upon which these forward-looking statements are based are reasonable, any of these assumptions could prove to be inaccurate and the forward-looking statements based on these assumptions could be incorrect. Our operations involve risks and uncertainties, many of which are outside our control, and any one of which, or a combination of which, could materially affect our results of operations and whether the forward-looking statements ultimately prove to be correct. Actual results and trends in the future may differ materially from those suggested or implied by the forward-looking statements depending on a variety of factors. Some of the factors that we believe could affect our results include our substantial indebtedness; our ability to service our outstanding indebtedness and the impact such indebtedness may have on the way we operate our business; the loss of one or more of our significant customers or strategic relationships; general economic and business conditions and any downturns in the cyclical industry in which we operate; our competitive environment and our ability to make technological advances; interruptions in our production or manufacturing capacity and our ability to obtain supplies; our ability to meet unscheduled or temporary increases in demand in our target markets, economic conditions in the industries in which our products are sold; maintenance and protection of our intellectual property; political and economic conditions in the countries where we conduct business; geological conditions in some of the earthquake-prone countries where certain of our customers and suppliers are based; the costs of environmental compliance and/or the imposition of liabilities under environmental laws and regulations; potential product liability or personal injury claims; inability to make necessary capital expenditures; loss of key personnel; the financial viability of our customers, distributors or suppliers; and our ability to achieve cost savings as well as other matters described under "Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K and other filings with the SEC. We undertake no obligation to update any information contained in this press release.