Lite-On Technology Corp (光寶科技) yesterday reported a better-than-expected profit for last quarter.
Net profit grew 4 percent year-on-year to NT$1.7 billion (US$52.24 million), or earnings per share of NT$0.74, outperforming the market’s consensus estimate of NT$1.57 billion, or NT$0.67 per share.
However, last quarter’s figure plunged 32 percent from the prior quarter’s NT$2.5 billion, because of seasonal factors.
Due to a better product portfolio and operating efficiency, gross margin and operating margin were 13.2 percent and 4.1 percent in the first quarter respectively, an increase of 0.66 percentage points and 0.78 percentage points from a year earlier, Lite-On said.
“Last quarter was considered the bottom of the year and the overall business is forecast to pick up from this quarter,” Lite-On chief executive officer Warren Chen (陳廣中) told an investors’ conference at the firm’s headquarters in Taipei.
In the first quarter, consolidated revenue totaled NT$49.84 billion, down 3 percent annually and 14 percent quarterly, company data showed.
The electronics component maker’s cloud-computing business segment — including power supply units, casings for servers and storage — contributed as much as 10 percent to its first-quarter revenue.
“High-end power supply units for servers were the main growth driver for Lite-On’s cloud-computing segment last quarter,” Lite-On investor relations senior director Julia Wang (王玉玲) said.
In addition to robust demand from server brand names, such as HP Inc and Dell Inc, Lite-On also saw rising demand for high-end power supply units from self-built data center clients, Wang said.
The company’s LED business — which refers to LED modules and outdoor LED lighting products — sales also performed well in the first quarter, accounting for 10 percent of its total revenue.
However, weaker-than-expected demand for smartphones in the end-market last quarter dragged down Lite-On’s smartphone camera module (CCM) business, Chen said.
The weakness is likely to extend to this quarter before the CCM business rebounds in the second half of the year, Chen said, citing smartphone launches from new clients and an anticipated rising adoption of dual cameras for existing clients’ new products.
Overall, the company’s LED business revenue is forecast to increase from this quarter due mainly to increasing use of LED modules in smartphones, Wang said.
“The demand for LED flash is expected to grow in tandem with the increasing adoption of dual cameras used for high-end smartphones later this year,” Wang said.
In addition, steady growth in the LED streetlamp and automotive LED lighting businesses would also benefit Lite-On’s overall LED business, she added.
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