On a GAAP basis, the company reported record net income of $1.7 million in the third quarter of 2009, or $0.08 per diluted share. This compares to a GAAP net loss of $2.6 million, or $0.14 per share, for the third quarter of 2008, and a net loss of $0.1 million for the second quarter of 2009.

On a non-GAAP basis, which excludes stock-based compensation and inventory write-off charges, the company reported record net income of $1.8 million in the third quarter of 2009, or $0.09 per diluted share. This compares with a non-GAAP net loss of $1.7 million, or $0.09 per share, in the third quarter of 2008, and breakeven results in the second quarter of 2009.

The company generated $1.9 million in cash from operating activities during the third quarter of 2009. Total cash reserves increased to $16.1 million at the end of the third quarter of 2009.

Management Comments

“As anticipated, third quarter results showed excellent sequential improvement and a real turnaround compared to the third quarter of last year”, commented Gabi Seligsohn, President and CEO of Nova. “We doubled our gross margins and reported a swing of over $4 million from a net loss of $2.6 million in the third quarter of 2008 to a net profit of $1.7 million in the third quarter of 2009, on improved revenues which grew 29%. In addition, our order patterns remain strong and we expect this trend to continue”.

“Looking forward, sales of both our Integrated and Stand Alone solutions are well-positioned for further growth, because they enable cost-effective migration to lower technology nodes, while still using existing process equipment. Another positive sign is that we have begun to receive orders related to capacity expansions, driven by consumer demand for mobile computing devices such as netbooks and high end cellular devices. Given the significant increase we are continuing to see in our bookings, we expect to continue and show strong financial performance in the coming quarters”.

The Company will host a conference call today, November 3, 2009, at 8:30am ET. To participate, please dial in the US: 1-888-668-9141; or internationally: +972-3-918-0609. A recording of the call will be available on Nova’s website, within 24 hours following the end of the call.

In addition, the conference call will also be webcast live from a link on Nova’s website at www.nova.co.il.

This press release provides financial measures that exclude non-cash charges for stock-based compensation, inventory write-off and impairment charges and are therefore not calculated in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). Management believes that these non-GAAP financial measures provide meaningful supplemental information regarding Nova’s performance because they reflect our operational results and enhances management’s and investors’ ability to evaluate Nova’s performance before charges considered by management to be outside Nova’s ongoing operating results.

The presentation of this non-GAAP financial information is not intended to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for the financial information prepared and presented in accordance with GAAP. Management believes that it is in the best interest of its investors to provide financial information that will facilitate comparison of both historical and future results and allows greater transparency to supplemental information used by management in its financial and operational decision making. A reconciliation of each GAAP to non-GAAP financial measure discussed in this press release is contained in the accompanying financial tables.