Fair Value

6 Months Ended

Sep. 28, 2013

Fair Value [Abstract]

Fair Value

Note 2 – Fair Value

The Company measures its cash equivalents, short-term investments and long-term investments at fair value. Fair value is defined as the price that would be received from selling an asset and paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. When determining fair value measurements for assets and liabilities required or permitted to be recorded at fair value, the Company considers the principal or most advantageous market in which it would transact and considers assumptions that market participants would use when pricing the asset or liability, such as inherent risk, transfer restrictions, and risk of nonperformance.

A three-tiered fair value hierarchy has been established as the basis for considering the above assumptions and determining the inputs used in the valuation methodologies in measuring fair values.  The three levels of inputs are defined as follows:

Level 1 – Unadjusted quoted market prices for identical assets or liabilities in active markets that the Company has the ability to access.

Level 2 – Observable inputs such as quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets and quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in inactive markets.

Level 3 – Valuations based on models where significant inputs are not observable. The unobservable inputs reflect the Company’s own assumptions about the factors that market participants would use.

The Company maximizes the use of observable inputs and minimizes the use of unobservable inputs. If a financial instrument uses an input that is significant to the fair value calculation, the instrument will be categorized based upon the lowest level of input that is significant to the fair value calculation.  The Company’s financial assets and liabilities measured at fair value on a recurring basis include cash equivalents and investment securities, both short-term and long-term.

The carrying value of cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, accounts payable and accrued liabilities approximate their fair value due to their short maturities.

The Company’s money market investments, certificates of deposit purchased directly from the bank, and Non-Qualified Deferred Compensation Plan ("NQDCP") assets and liabilities are valued using Level 1 inputs. Fixed income available-for-sale portfolio, mainly consisting of municipal bonds, corporate bonds, commercial paper, auction rate securities (ARS) that were redeemed at par value subsequent to September 28, 2013, and certificates of deposits bought in the secondary market, are valued using Level 2 inputs.

ARS, with a fair value of $1,900,000 and temporary impairment of $200,000, which was classified as  a long term investments at the end of the prior quarter,  was reclassified as $2,100,000 of short term investments at the end of this quarter due to its subsequent redemption at par value on October 21, 2013. Further, thisARS investment was transferred to Level 2 from Level 3 due to its redemption at par and its redemption price in an inactive market was used to determine fair value.

The following tables summarize assets and liabilities measured at fair value on a recurring basis as of September 28, 2013 and March 30, 2013, excluding accrued interest (in thousands):

	September 28, 2013
	Fair value measurements
Assets	Level 1			Level 2		Level 3		Total
Money market funds	$	7,744	(1)	$	-	$	-	$	7,744
Municipal bonds		-			91,943		-		91,943
Corporate bonds		-			33,468		-		33,468
Certificates of deposits		7,120			998		-		8,118
Commercial paper		-			749		-		749
Equity mutual funds related to NQDCP		10,193			-		-		10,193
Auction Rate Securities		-			2,100		-		2,100
Total assets at fair value	$	25,057		$	129,258	$	-	$	154,315
Liabilities
Obligation related to NQDCP	$	10,193		$	-	$	-	$	10,193
	March 30, 2013
	Fair value measurements
Assets	Level 1			Level 2		Level 3		Total
Money market funds	$	13,476	(1)	$	-	$	-	$	13,476
Municipal bonds		-			58,658		-		58,658
Corporate bonds		-			25,825		-		25,825
Government agency bonds		-			16,187		-		16,187
Certificate of deposits		3,459			4,300		-		7,759
Commercial Papers					5,745				5,745
Equity mutual funds related to NQDCP		9,673			-		-		9,673
Long-term investments in ARS		-			-		13,800		13,800
Total assets at fair value	$	26,608		$	110,715	$	13,800	$	151,123
Liabilities
Obligation related to NQDCP	$	9,673		$	-	$	-	$	9,673

^{_________________________}

(1) Money market funds of $7,744,000 and $13,476,000 were classified as cash equivalents as of September 28, 2013 and March 30, 2013, respectively.

During the three and six months ended September 28, 2013, the Company transferred ARS with a par value of $2,100,000 from Level 3 to Level 2 as the ARS was fully redeemed at par subsequent to September 28, 2013. During the three and six months ended September 29, 2012, there were no significant transfers between Level 1, Level 2 and Level 3.  The following table includes the activity for Auction Rate Securities that were classified as Level 3 of the valuation hierarchy (in thousands):

	Three Months Ended				Six Months Ended
	September 28,		September 29,		September 28,		September 29,
	2013		2012		2013		2012
Beginning balance of ARS classified as Level 3	$	1,900	$	13,600	$	13,800	$	25,900
Redemption of investments in ARS at par		-		-		(12,950)		(12,750)
Reversals of unrealized losses due to redemptions		-		-		970		-
Change in fair value of existing ARS		200		100		280		550
Reclassified to Level 2		(2,100)		-		(2,100)		-
Ending balance of ARS classified as Level 3	$	-	$	13,700	$	-	$	13,700

The Company transfers investments into and out of levels within the fair value hierarchy based on a change in circumstances at the end of the fiscal quarter.

During the three and six months ended September 28, 2013, the Company received $0 and $12,950,000, respectively, in proceeds for the redemptions at par value of the ARS with a carrying value at the time of $0 and $11,900,000. See Note 3 for further discussion of the Company’s ARS.  Subsequent to September 28, 2013, the Company received $2,100,000 for the redemption at par value of its last ARS holding.