Smartphone vendor HTC Corp (宏達電) yesterday reported a quarterly loss of NT$1.88 billion (US$62 million), while reiterating its confidence on sales of new phones to help it return to profitability this quarter.
The figure represents losses of NT$2.28 per share, in line with the company’s forecast range between losses of NT$2.1 and NT$2.6 per share as HTC told investors in February by telephone.
“The company expects to see a positive trajectory in its revenue in April from March, and forecasts quarter-on-quarter revenue growth in the second quarter, driven by strong market demand for its new products, including flagship HTC One [M8] and mid-tier flagship Desire 816,” HTC said in an e-mailed statement yesterday.
“The company expects to return to profitability in the second quarter, as indicated on the earnings call on February 10,” it added.
Yesterday, HTC also released revenue figures for last month. Revenue rose 2.16 percent annually to NT$16.23 billion from NT$15.88 billion a year ago. On a monthly basis, revenue surged 124 percent from NT$7.23 billion in February as it entered a new product cycle.
In the first three months of this year, revenue of NT$33.12 billion plunged 44.8 percent sequentially, from NT$60 billion in the fourth quarter last year.
That was a disappointment as HTC told investors in February that revenue would grow sequentially last quarter as sales of new products would fuel growth.
Barclays analyst Dale Gai (蓋欣山) said it remained uncertain whether HTC could sustain sales momentum to improve its profitability.
“HTC may be able to turn profitable this year after posting net losses of NT$1.32 billion last year, because of the company’s adjustments to its product strategies,” Gai said by telephone.
“However, HTC’s long-term outlook remains unclear, as the market is reaching saturation,” Gai said. “The saturation phenomenon is an issue that every brand would have to face, including Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Inc.”
Citing studies by Barclays, Gai said HTC’s flagship product sales volume was estimated to drop to about 6 million units this year from 7 million units last year because of weakening market demand for high-end smartphones.
In addition, though the company’s new M8 flagship product is well-designed, replacement demand for the smartphone model may not be that strong, given its high price and lack of “wow factors” beyond dual rear cameras, Gai said.
Gai forecast HTC would report two more months of sequential growth in revenue until May.
This quarter, HTC’s revenue is expected to grow 60 percent quarter-on-quarter to about NT$53 billion, driven largely by the flagship M8 model in the US and European countries, as well as the its mid-tier Desire 816 in emerging markets like China, Gai said.
Shipments were expected to stay at about 20 million units globally this year, supported mainly by increases in the mid and low-end segments, he forecast.
Taiwan will prioritize the development of silicon photonics by taking advantage of its strength in the semiconductor industry to build another shield to protect the local economy, National Development Council (NDC) Minister Paul Liu (劉鏡清) said yesterday. Speaking at a meeting of the legislature’s Economics Committee, Liu said Taiwan already has the artificial intelligence (AI) industry as a shield, after the semiconductor industry, to safeguard the country, and is looking at new unique fields to build more economic shields. While Taiwan will further strengthen its existing shields, over the longer term, the country is determined to focus on such potential segments as
UNCERTAINTY: Innolux activated a stringent supply chain management mechanism, as it did during the COVID-19 pandemic, to ensure optimal inventory levels for customers Flat-panel display makers AUO Corp (友達) and Innolux Corp (群創) yesterday said that about 12 to 20 percent of their display business is at risk of potential US tariffs and that they would relocate production or shipment destinations to mitigate the levies’ effects. US tariffs would have a direct impact of US$200 million on AUO’s revenue, company chairman Paul Peng (彭雙浪) told reporters on the sidelines of the Touch Taiwan trade show in Taipei yesterday. That would make up about 12 percent of the company’s overall revenue. To cope with the tariff uncertainty, AUO plans to allocate its production to manufacturing facilities in
COLLABORATION: Given Taiwan’s key position in global supply chains, the US firm is discussing strategies with local partners and clients to deal with global uncertainties Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) yesterday said it is meeting with local ecosystem partners, including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), to discuss strategies, including long-term manufacturing, to navigate uncertainties such as US tariffs, as Taiwan occupies an important position in global supply chains. AMD chief executive officer Lisa Su (蘇姿丰) told reporters that Taiwan is an important part of the chip designer’s ecosystem and she is discussing with partners and customers in Taiwan to forge strong collaborations on different areas during this critical period. AMD has just become the first artificial-intelligence (AI) server chip customer of TSMC to utilize its advanced
Chizuko Kimura has become the first female sushi chef in the world to win a Michelin star, fulfilling a promise she made to her dying husband to continue his legacy. The 54-year-old Japanese chef regained the Michelin star her late husband, Shunei Kimura, won three years ago for their Sushi Shunei restaurant in Paris. For Shunei Kimura, the star was a dream come true. However, the joy was short-lived. He died from cancer just three months later in June 2022. He was 65. The following year, the restaurant in the heart of Montmartre lost its star rating. Chizuko Kimura insisted that the new star is still down
RSS