Advanced Semiconductor Engineering Inc (ASE, 日月光半導體), the world’s biggest chip packaging and testing company, yesterday posted a profit of NT$3.45 billion (US$107.2 million) for the fourth quarter of last year, compared with a net loss of NT$800 million a year earlier.
This marked an increase from a net income of NT$3.19 billion in the third quarter.
Diluted earnings per share for the fourth quarter were NT$0.66, compared with losses of NT$0.15 a year earlier and NT$0.61 in earnings in the previous quarter, the company said in a statement.
ASE’s fourth-quarter results came after rival Siliconware Precision Industries Co (SPIL, 矽品精密) reported on Wednesday that it swung to a profit of NT$4.3 billion for the quarter from a loss of NT$1.03 billion a year earlier.
The quarterly result was also higher than the forecast of NT$3.13 billion profit, or NT$0.57 per share, in a Bloomberg survey of analysts, Citigroup said in a note issued on Tuesday.
With more orders coming in from major customers amid improving demand, the Kaohsiung-based ASE said quarterly revenue totaled NT$26.29 billion, up 44 percent from a year ago and 4 percent higher than the previous quarter.
Sales from IC packaging operations accounted for the lion’s share of the company’s total revenue for the quarter, at NT$21.13 billion. or 81 percent.
Testing operations accounted for NT$4.56 billion (17 percent) and NT$599 million worth of substrates sold to third parties (2 percent).
For the whole of last year, ASE said its net income amounted to NT$6.74 billion, up 9.42 percent from NT$6.16 billion in 2008. Revenue totaled NT$85.78 billion, down 9.16 percent from NT$94.43 billion in 2008.
ASE chief financial officer Joseph Tung (董宏思) told investors yesterday that prospects for the first half of the year would remain supportive as customers continue restocking, even though it is traditionally a slow season.
First-quarter revenue would be flat or a bit lower from the previous quarter, as the Lunar New Year holiday cut short working days in the quarter, he said.
But industry visibility for the second half of the year was not as clear as the first half, he said, citing uncertainties in market conditions and the global economy.
The company also plans to allot between US$450 million and US$500 million for capital expenditure this year, up from US$350 million last year, Tung said.
Shares of ASE dropped 2.28 percent to NT$25.75 on the Taiwan Stock Exchange yesterday before the fourth-quarter results were released.
SPIL shares plunged by the daily limit to NT$37.6.
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