Catcher Technology Co (可成) yesterday said business would be better this quarter and the momentum would sustain into the second half, referencing the company’s typical business cycle.
“We maintain our view that the first quarter of this year will be a low point, and that business will grow quarter-by-quarter for the rest of the year,” Catcher spokesman James Wu (巫俊毅) said by telephone.
Wu’s remarks came after the metal casing supplier posted revenue of NT$16.84 billion (US$520.11 million) for the first quarter, representing a 3.2 percent year-on-year decline and below the company’s forecast of NT$17.4 billion.
The figure represents a 28.27 percent decline from the prior quarter’s NT$23.48 billion, according to a Catcher filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange.
Wu said last month was the beginning of a rebound, after monthly sales expanded 54.8 percent to NT$6.44 billion from February because of new smartphone launches by clients and more working days.
“The second quarter is expected to be better than the first quarter,” he said, adding that overall client demand remains weak in the first half compared with last year.
Catcher chairman Allen Hung (洪水樹) in January told investors that the market had been volatile since the end of the final quarter of last year and that orders would grow in the second half on the back of new product launches by clients.
JPMorgan Securities Ltd on Monday last week forecast Catcher’s revenue this quarter would reach NT$20.69 billion, up 2.83 percent from a year earlier.
JPMorgan said it believes Catcher would gain market share from the release of Apple Inc’s next-generation 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch iPhones this year, adding that the iPhone metal-casing business would contribute 49 percent to Catcher’s total revenue this year.
Catcher’s smartphone segment, including its iPhone business, accounted for 57 percent of the firm’s revenue of NT$82.41 billion last year.
The company’s notebook computer segment accounted for 32 percent of its revenue last year, while consumer electronics products contributed 10 percent.
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