Largan Precision Co (大立光), the nation’s leading maker of handset lenses, saw its consolidated revenue reach a record high of NT$1.38 billion (US$47.6 million) last month, and its monthly growth of 1.25 percent was faster than the 0.59 percent it recorded the previous month.
Last month’s consolidated sales were 30.75 percent higher than a year earlier, which was slower than the yearly increase of 42.78 percent recorded in the previous month, according to information posted on the company’s Web site yesterday after the closure of the stock market.
In the first seven months of this year, accumulated revenue reached NT$8.96 billion, up 48.25 percent from NT$6.04 billion a year earlier, the company’s data showed.
The Taichung-based company — whose customers include HTC Corp (宏達電), Apple Inc, Nokia Oyj and Research In Motion Ltd — has reported record sales for four consecutive months on rising demand for smartphones.
Largan is expected to post another record figure this month as the third quarter is normally the high season for the smartphone business.
The company is receiving strong orders from Apple for various products, including iPhones and iPads, and the US company is expected to begin shipping its next-generation iPhone — the iPhone 5 — next month, analysts said.
In addition, Largan is likely to see revenue increase after it ramps up sales of 8-megapixel (MP) lenses, they added.
The company has led its peers in accelerated product migration from 3MP/5MP to 5MP/8MP lenses such as those used in Apple’s iPhone 5 and HTC’s Sensation smartphones, Lu Chia-lin (呂家霖), a Taipei-based analyst at Samsung Securities (Asia) Ltd, said in a report on July 21.
Bank of America Merrill Lynch last week raised its target price for Largan to NT$1,260, maintaining its “buy” rating on the stock, compared with Samung’s target price of NT$910, with a "hold" rating.
Largan’s share price fell 5.14 percent to NT$886 yesterday as Taiwan’s market encountered heavy selloffs in the midst of a global market rout triggered by plunges in the overnight US and European markets.
The stock, which reached a record closing price of NT$1,005 on Tuesday, has increased 22.21 percent so far this year versus a 12.48 percent decline for the benchmark TAIEX, Taiwan Stock Exchange data showed.
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