By Dagmarah Mackos

(Reuters) -BE Semiconductor Industries (Besi) expects a rise in demand for its hybrid bonding systems in 2025 following shipment delays in the fourth quarter, the chipmaking parts supplier said on Thursday, after third-quarter new orders missed estimates.

Besi's stock, down about 26% this year, was up around 4% at 0825 GMT, recovering from a drop in early trading.

The Dutch company said it received substantial orders for hybrid bonding systems from both existing and new customers and anticipated additional orders in the fourth quarter as global adoption continues to expand.

As appetite for AI technology grows, Besi is banking on its hybrid bonding tools used to create tighter interconnections inside a chip, but a slower than expected recovery in automotive and smartphone markets, along with high inventories, are raising concerns about global semiconductor demand.

Besi expects a sharp increase in demand for these systems in 2025, and plans to double its cleanroom facilities in Malaysia to meet it, it added. Cleanrooms are controlled environments that minimise contamination, key for hybrid bonding semiconductor equipment manufacturing.

In the third quarter, strong growth in computing end-user markets, including hybrid bonding, photonics and AI applications, was partially offset by ongoing weakness in automotive and Chinese markets, a trend the company expects to persist throughout the year, it said.

The company's order bookings fell 18% quarter-on-quarter to 151.8 million euros ($164 million) in the three months to the end of September, compared with an estimate of 177 million euros cited by Visible Alpha analysts.

Sales, gross margin, and net profit were broadly in line with Visible Alpha's estimates of 153 million euros, 65.2%, and 44 million euros, respectively.

For the fourth quarter, the company sees flat revenue, with an estimated variation of 10%, compared with 156.6 million euros in July-September, and a gross margin of 63-65%, down from 64.7% in the third quarter.

Besi blamed a delay by an unidentified customer in taking delivery of hybrid bonding systems due in the fourth quarter.

Analysts said order delays were not a surprise, given the prolonged industry weakness and struggles of Besi's customers such as Samsung Electronics and Intel.

Following strong pandemic demand, chipmakers built excess capacity, but as supply chain issues eased, they delayed new tool orders until their factories neared full capacity.

($1 = 0.9267 euros)

(Reporting by Dagmarah Mackos; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala, Mark Potter and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)