UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

Form 8-K

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported) December 17, 2002
Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter Richardson Electronics, Ltd.
State or other jurisdiction of incorporation Delaware
Commission file Number 0-12906
IRS Employer Identification No. 36-2096643
Address of principal executive office 40W267 Keslinger Road, P. O. Box 393, La Fox, IL
Zip Code 60147-0393
Registrant's telephone number, including area code 630-208-2200

This Current Report on Form 8-K contains a total of 5 pages.


Item 9. Regulation FD Disclosure

Richardson Reports Sales Increased 9.5% Sequentially in the Second Quarter

LaFox, IL, Tuesday December 17, 2002: Richardson Electronics, Ltd. (NASDAQ: RELL) today reported results for the second quarter of fiscal 2003, which ended November 30, 2002. Revenues in the second quarter of 2003 were $119.0 million, an increase of 9.5% from the previous quarter. Revenues from continuing operations, excluding the Medical Glassware Business sold in February 2002, increased 6.5% from the prior year. Net earnings were $1.2 million, or $0.09 per share, compared to net earnings of $0.9 million, or $0.07 per share for the same quarter last year.

The Company's three largest business units, RF & Wireless Communications, Security Systems, and Industrial Products, and three largest regions, North America, Europe and Asia Pacific, all recorded revenue growth over the same quarter and six-month period last year.

Edward J. Richardson, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, said, "The strong broad based growth achieved across our largest strategic business units we believe demonstrates the global demand for our engineered solutions strategy."

For the six-month period, revenues from continuing operations in the six months increased 6.9% from the prior year. Overall revenues were $227.6 million, an increase of 3.4% from the six-month period a year ago. Net earnings, before cumulative effect of change in accounting principle, in the six months were $1.5 million, or $0.11 per share, compared to $0.5 million, or $0.04 per share a year ago.

The Company adopted SFAS No. 142, "Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets", effective June 1, 2002. In accordance with the transitional rules for this pronouncement, the Company completed its evaluation of the carrying value of goodwill and determined that the carrying value exceeded the fair value in certain instances. As a result of this new pronouncement, Richardson recorded an impairment charge of $17.9 million net of tax, or $1.28 per share, which has been recorded as a cumulative effect of accounting change in the first quarter of fiscal 2003.

"This was the second consecutive quarter of growth compared to the declines we experienced last year," added Mr. Richardson. "This improvement combined with the strong bookings that we have experienced so far suggests that the worst is behind us, and we are returning to normal market conditions. "

Mr. Richardson concluded, "Bookings were up 17% sequentially in the quarter with all four business units growing. We have solid momentum going into the second half of our fiscal year to continue market share gains and year-over-year growth in an otherwise non-eventful economy."

On Wednesday, December 18, 2002 at 9:00 a.m. CST, Mr. Edward J. Richardson, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer will host a conference call to discuss the release. A question and answer session will be included as part of the call's agenda. To listen to the call, please dial 800-553-0272 approximately five minutes prior to the start of the call. A replay of the call will be available from 12:30 p.m. on December 18, 2002 through March 25, 2003. The telephone numbers for the replay are (USA) 800-475-6701 and (International) 320-365-3844; access code 663870.

This release includes certain "forward looking" statements as defined by the SEC. Such statements are not guarantees of future performance since the company's operations involve risks and uncertainties and actual results may differ materially from predictions. Reference is made to the company's Form 10-Q's and 10-K's for a summary of some of the risks that may affect the company's performance.

About Richardson Electronics

Richardson Electronics, Ltd. is a global provider of "engineered solutions," serving the RF and wireless communications, industrial power conversion, security and display systems markets. The Company delivers engineered solutions for its customers' needs through product manufacturing, systems integration, prototype design and assembly, testing and logistics. Press announcements and other information about Richardson are available on the World Wide Web at http://www.rell.com/investor.asp.



Richardson Electronics, Ltd.
Consolidated Condensed Statements of Operations
Second Quarter Fiscal 2003, Ended November 30, 2002
(in thousands, except per share amounts)
  Three Months
Six Months
  FY 2003
FY 2002
FY 2003
FY 2002
Net sales $ 118,958 $ 115,499 $ 227,572 $ 220,180
Cost of products sold 90,045
87,118
171,505
165,325
     Gross margin 28,913 28,381 56,067 54,855
Selling, general and administrative expense 24,458
23,312
48,704
46,854
     Operating income 4,455 5,069 7,363 8,001
Other expenses, net 2,595
3,656
5,059
7,144
     Income before income taxes and cumulative effect of accounting change 1,860 1,413 2,304 857
Income taxes 670
511
830
309
     Net income before cumulative effect of accounting change 1,190 902 1,474 548
Cumulative effect of accounting change, net of tax (Note 1) -
-
(17,862)
-
     Net income (loss) $   1,190
$     902
$ (16,388)
$   548
Net income (loss) per share - basic:
     Net income per share before cumulative effect of accounting change

$       .09

$       .07

$       .11

$       .04
     Cumulative effect of accounting change, net of tax -
-
(1.30)
-
        Net income(loss) per share $       .09
$        .07
$    (1.19)
$       .04
     Average shares outstanding 13,789
13,614
13,785
13,570
Net income (loss) per share - diluted:
     Net income per share before cumulative effect of accounting change

$       .09

$       .07

$       .11

$       .04
     Cumulative effect of accounting change, net of tax -
-
(1.28)
-
        Net income(loss) per share $       .09
$        .07
$    (1.17)
$       .04
     Average shares outstanding 13,871
13,806
14,004
13,883
Dividends per common share $ .04
$ .04

$ .08
$ .08

Notes:

  1. During the quarter ended November 30, 2002, the Company adopted SFAS 142, "Goodwill and Other intangible Assets" effective June 1, 2002 and as result recorded a cumulative effect adjustment of $17,862, net of taxes of $3,725 to write-off impaired goodwill. Previously reported quarterly results for the quarter ended August 31, 2002 have been revised to reflect adoption of SFAS 142, "Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets" effective June 1, 2002. First quarter Consolidated Condensed Statements of Operations amounts are as follows:
      First Quarter
    Net income as previously reported $ 284
    Cumulative effect of accounting change, net of tax (17,862)
    Net loss as revised (17,578)
    Net income per share - basic as previously reported $ 0.02
    Cumulative effect of accounting change, net of tax (1.30)
    Net loss per share - basic as revised (1.28)
    Net income per share - diluted as previously reported $ 0.02
    Cumulative effect of accounting change, net of tax (1.26)
    Net loss per share - diluted as revised (1.24)


Richardson Electronics, Ltd.
Sales and Gross Margin
Second Quarter Fiscal 2003, Ended November 30, 2002
(in thousands, unaudited)
By Business Unit: Sales
Gross Margin
  FY 2003
FY 2002
% Change
FY 2003
GM% of Sales
FY 2002
GM% of Sales

Second Quarter
     RFWC
     IPG
     SSD
     DSG
     MSG
     Corporate


$ 58,386
19,707
23,989
14,833
245
1,798


$ 53,077
18,750
21,491
15,839
3,981
2,361


10.0%
5.1%
11.6%
-6.4%
-93.8%



$ 13,091
6,480
6,013
3,993
31
(695)


22.4%
32.9%
25.1%
26.9%
12.7%


$ 12,546
6,164
5,084
4,001
818
(232)

23.6%
32.9%
23.7%
25.3%
20.5%


          Total $118,958
$115,499
3.0% $ 28,913
24.3% $ 28,381
24.6%
Excliuding MSG $118,713 $111,518 6.5% $ 28,882 24.3% $ 27,563 24.7%
Full Year
     RFWC
     IPG
     SSD
     DSG
     MSG
     Corporate

$110,187
38,469
46,396
28,122
844
3,554


$97,540
37,534
41,880
30,701
8,057
4,468


13.0%
2.5%
10.8%
-8.4%
-89.5%



$ 24,975
12,891
11,447
7,596
187
(1,029)


22.7%
33.5%
24.7%
27.0%
22.2%


$ 23,736
12,561
9,869
7,709
1,751
(771)

24.3%
33.5%
23.6%
25.1%
21.7%


          Total $227,572
$220,180
3.4% $ 56,067
24.6% $ 54,855
24.9%
Excluding MSG $226,728 $212,123 6.9% $ 55,880 24.6% $ 53,104 25.0%
 
By Area: Sales
Gross Margin
  FY 2003
FY 2002
% Change
FY 2003
GM% of Sales
FY 2002
GM% of Sales
Second Quarter
     North America
     Europe
     Asia/Pacific
     Latin America
     Other
     Corporate

$ 67,126
24,924
18,768
4,968
1,374
1,798

$ 60,641
24,697
18,299
7,545
1,956
2,361

10.7%
0.9%
2.6%
-34.2%
-29.8%


$ 16,948
6,666
4,193
1,460
341
(695)

25.2%
26.7%
22.3%
29.4%
24.8%


$ 15,603
6,446
4,091
1,998
475
(232)

25.7%
26.1%
22.4%
26.5%
24.3%


          Total $ 118,958
$115,499
3.0% $ 28,913
24.3% $ 28,381
24.6%
Full Year
     North America
     Europe
     Asia/Pacific
     Latin America
     Other
     Corporate

$ 127,724
47,364
36,101
10,035
2,794
3,554

$ 120,869
45,472
31,373
14,252
3,746
4,468

5.7%
4.2%
15.1%
-29.6%
-25.4%


$ 32,586
12,619
8,409
2,751
731
(1,029)

25.5%
26.6%
23.3%
27.4%
26.2%


$ 31,206
12,135
7,486
3,879
920
(771)

25.8%
26.7%
23.9%
27.2%
24.6%


          Total $ 227,572
$ 220,180
3.4% $ 56,067
24.6% $ 54,855
24.9%


    Note: Fiscal 2002 data has been reclassified to conform with the current presentation.