Shares of Catcher Technology Co (可成), which supplies metal casings for Apple Inc’s iPhone, rebounded in Taipei trading yesterday after company chairman Allen Hung (洪水樹) dismissed speculation that the US company would be switching to glass casings for its new iPhone model next year.
During an investors’ conference, Hung said that Apple has not presented such a design to Catcher, adding that it was merely market speculation as no casing supplier has broken through the technological barrier to produce glass bodies for smartphones.
Even if Apple were to adopt just a 3D glass back cover for iPhones instead of a full-glass casing, it would still require metal frames to support the device’s structure, Hung said.
Catcher shares yesterday surged 5.94 percent to close at NT$214, with 18.32 million shares changing hands, ending six straight sessions of losses.
The company’s shares have dropped 18.63 percent over the past 30 sessions amid speculation about a design change for new iPhones.
JPMorgan Securities Ltd agreed with Hung’s remarks, saying in a note that “the truth will prevail,” as technically and physically, full-glass casings cannot be used to support the structure of smartphones.
Daiwa Capital Markets Co said that concerns about Apple adopting a different material for casing might continue to linger, but that it was not too worried about a possible change in iPhone casing material due to technical limitations.
Daiwa said in a separate note that metal would remain an important solution to smartphones and Catcher would continue to benefit, given the company’s leading position in the industry.
In the January-to-March quarter, Catcher’s net profit declined 10.6 percent annually to NT$4.16 billion (US$128.35 million), or earnings per share of NT$5.4, down from NT$6.04 in the same period last year.
Last quarter’s results were the lowest in seven quarters, the company said on Thursday.
Catcher’s revenue for this quarter is forecast to grow 10.98 percent to NT$18.69 billion from NT$16.84 billion in the first quarter, JPMorgan analysts led by Narci Chang (張恆) said.
The company’s business in the second half of this year is likely to gain support from new projects from two or three new clients, with annual revenue increasing 3.67 percent to NT$85.44 billion this year from last year, Chang said.
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