AMD plans to sell Texas campus, lease back land to raise cash

We're not for sale, AMD said earlier this month. Its buildings are, though.

Chip-maker AMD is planning to raise funds by selling off its Austin, TX campus and leasing it back, says a report by the Reuters news agency, as the firm struggles in the face of a dwindling PC market and a weaker than expected third quarter.

AMD is expected to sell the 58-acre site, which opened in 2008, for $150-200 million and could close the deal as soon as the second quarter 2013, a spokesperson for the company told Reuters. In doing so, the ailing firm could lease back the space for 12-15 years.

But, it's not the first time this has happened, a building in Toronto was sold and leased back in the past, freeing up real-estate assets and adding the return onto its cash pile. The firm's will remain headquartered in Sunnyvale, CA.

AMD's third quarter results were poor and were hit harder than expected. It was saddled with excess inventory and suffered lower than expected selling prices throughout the quarter. The firm even had to write-down about $100 million worth of inventory due to a "lower anticipated future demand for certain products."

It's not the only firm that is struggling, however. Those who failed to keep up with the smartphone and post-PC curve have been hit by the lack of PC demand, such as arch-rival Intel, which was also hit severely as a result of the sluggish PC market.