Restructuring Plans Announced

FEI Company (NASDAQ:FEIC) reported first-quarter revenue and operating income that were above the levels of the fourth quarter of 2007. Revenues were at record levels for the fourth time in the last five quarters.

Net sales for the quarter ended March 30, 2008 of $151.6 million were up 1% compared to the fourth quarter of 2007 and up 2% compared to the first quarter of 2007. Bookings in the quarter totaled $150.5 million, compared with $156.3 million in the fourth quarter of 2007 and $152.6 million for the first quarter of 2007. The book-to-bill ratio for the latest quarter was 0.99 to 1.00. The backlog at the end of the quarter was $309.6 million, of which over 90% is expected to ship by the end of 2008.

Operating income for the first quarter of 2008 was $8.8 million, compared with $7.4 million in the fourth quarter of 2007 and $18.8 million in last year’s first quarter. Net income for the first quarter of 2008 was $8.2 million, compared with $15.9 million in the fourth quarter of 2007 and $15.1 million in last year’s first quarter. The company recorded a tax benefit of $4.3 million in the fourth quarter of 2007, due mainly to the completion of various international tax audits. The tax benefit increased fourth-quarter 2007 net income and net income per share by approximately $6.7 million and $0.15 per share, respectively.

Diluted earnings per share from continuing operations in the latest quarter were $0.20, compared with $0.36 in the fourth quarter of 2007 and $0.36 in the first quarter of 2007. The gross profit margin was 39.1 % in the first quarter of 2008, compared with 39.7% in the fourth quarter of 2007 and 43.1% in the prior year’s first quarter.

“The strength of our market and geographic diversity was again demonstrated in the first quarter,” said Don Kania, president and CEO of FEI, “despite the negative impact of a weak dollar and a difficult semiconductor capital equipment market. Bookings were ahead of forecast, and our backlog remains robust. Revenue was again the highest ever for a single quarter, but our margins are under pressure. While we remain cautious about the near-term environment, we continue to see significant growth opportunities for the company.”

“In light of the challenging environment and weak U.S. dollar, we are undertaking a restructuring plan to improve profitability,” continued Kania. “While this is expected to result in charges of up to $15 million this year, we expect future annual earnings benefits to exceed that amount, and we expect to enter 2009 with a lower cost structure, a better currency balance and more efficient factory utilization.”

“We recently announced an important collaboration agreement with Imago Scientific Instruments that reflects important elements of our strategy,” added Kania. “The agreement expands our product offering with Imago’s leading-edge atom probe microscopes that are complimentary to our existing products. It also allows for an equity investment in Imago and the option to purchase the company in the future. The collaboration is not expected to have a significant impact on 2008 financial results, but could provide important growth in 2009 and beyond.”

Bookings and revenue comparisons for the company’s market segments and other data are included in the supplementary information attached to this release, along with detailed statements of operations and balance sheets.

Second Quarter 2008 Guidance and Restructuring Plans

FEI currently expects net sales for the second quarter of 2008 to be in the range of $146 million to $152 million. Bookings are expected to be above $140 million, and earnings are expected to be in the range of $0.12 to $0.17 per share, assuming a 24% tax rate and excluding the impact of restructuring charges. Earnings per share are expected to be negatively impacted compared with the first quarter due to the strong euro relative to the U.S. dollar, as well as significantly lower interest income on invested cash balances.

During the second quarter, the company will adopt a plan to optimize its operations and improve its cost structure. As part of this plan the company will shift a portion of its supply chain from high-cost euro-based suppliers to lower-cost alternatives that are primarily dollar-based or dollar-linked. It also plans to transfer the manufacturing of certain products to lower-cost areas and improve efficiency at existing factories. In addition to these changes, the company expects to reduce its work force by approximately 3% to approximately 1,800 in the next 90 days. As a result, the company expects to record restructuring charges in the second quarter of up to $5 million and further charges of up to approximately $10 million in the second half of the year.

Investor Conference Call -- 2:00 p.m. PDT Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Parties interested in listening to FEI's quarterly conference call may do so by dialing 1-800-366-3908 (domestic, toll-free) or 1-303-262-2190 (international) and asking for the FEI First Quarter Earnings call. The call can also be accessed via the web by going to FEI's Investor Relations page at www.fei.com, where the webcast will also be archived. A telephone replay of the call will also be accessible for one month by dialing 1-800-405-2236 (US) or 1-303-590-3000 (international) and entering the access code 11113050#.

About FEI

FEI (Nasdaq:FEIC) is a global leader in providing innovative instruments for nanoscale imaging, analysis and prototyping. FEI focuses on delivering solutions that provide groundbreaking results and accelerate research, development and manufacturing cycles for its customers in semiconductor and data storage, academic and industrial R&D and life sciences markets. With R&D centers in North America and Europe, and sales and service operations in more than 50 countries around the world, FEI’s Tools for Nanotech™ are bringing the nanoscale within the grasp of leading researchers and manufacturers. More information can be found online at: www.fei.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

This news release contains forward-looking statements that include our guidance for the second quarter of 2008; the expected shipment of our backlog; expectations for future bookings and long-run revenue growth; the impact of a weak dollar and our efforts to mitigate that impact; the timing, scope and impact of the planned restructuring and the impact of new product introductions and collaborations with other companies. Factors that could affect these forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the strength of the Research and Industry, Electronics and Life Sciences segments; cyclical changes in the data storage and semiconductor industries, which are the major components of the Electronics market; fluctuations in foreign exchange, interest and tax rates; our continued ability to maintain deferral accounting of hedge transactions; valuation of the auction rate securities we hold and classification of them on the balance sheet; inability to produce a higher volume of products with existing personnel or facilities; reduced profitability due to failure to achieve or sustain margin improvement in service or product manufacturing; the relative mix of higher-margin and lower-margin products; failure to achieve expected benefits of restructuring plans; changes in restructuring plans; risks associated with shipping a high percentage of the company’s quarterly revenue in the last month of the quarter; difficulty in obtaining parts from suppliers; inability to achieve cost reductions in manufacturing or other areas; lower than expected customer orders; cancellation of customer orders; customer requests to defer planned shipments; failure of customers to adopt new technologies; increased competition and new product offerings from competitors; lower average sales prices and reduced margins on some product sales due to increased competition; failure of the company's products and technology to find acceptance with customers; delays in shipping products for technical performance, component supply or other reasons; unfavorable business conditions and lack of growth in the general economy, both domestic and foreign; potential additional restructurings and reorganizations not presently anticipated; reduced sales due to geopolitical risks; changes in trade policies and tariff regulations; changes in the regulatory environment in the nations where we do business; inability to overcome technological barriers; additional selling, general and administrative or research and development expenses; additional costs related to future merger and acquisition activity; and failure of the company to achieve anticipated benefits of acquisitions and collaborations, including failure to achieve financial goals and integrate future acquisitions successfully. Please also refer to our Form 10-K, Forms 10-Q, Forms 8-K and other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for additional information on these factors and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. FEI assumes no duty to update forward-looking statements.