Brave C&H Supply Co Ltd (倉和), which makes precision screens used in solar cells, saw its shares soar 15.56 percent yesterday after its debut on the Taipei Exchange amid recovering solar cell demand.
Shares closed at NT$104, from an initial public offering price of NT$90, making Brave the second-highest-priced solar stock after photovoltaic conductive paste supplier Giga Solar Material Corp (碩禾).
Giga Solar fell 1.94 percent to NT$404.5 per share yesterday.
Brave, established in 1994, saw revenue last quarter plunge 23 percent to NT$260.92 million (US$8.25 million), compared with NT$339.09 million a year earlier, as the solar industry suffered a two-quarters-long slump after China ended a solar subsidiary program in June.
Brave chairman Fred Tsai (蔡富得) said the industry likely hit bottom last month or early this month.
“A mild recovery is likely to start. Its strength depends on how fast inventory is digested,” Tsai told investors on Sept. 27, attributing the recovery to improving demand from emerging markets such as China and India.
Market researcher TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) on Thursday said that demand picked up during the national holidays in China earlier this month, but warned that the rebound could be short-lived.
“Solar companies will continue to face great challenges in the fourth quarter,” TrendForce said in a report.
Brave supplies precision screens to solar cell manufacturers including Taiwan’s Gintech Energy Corp (昱晶) and Motech Industries Inc (茂迪), as well as China’s Trina Solar Ltd (天合光能).
Taiwan and China are the two biggest markets for Brave, accounting for about 78 percent of its total shipments.
The company is diversifying its markets to Japan, South Korea, India and other Southeast Asian countries to minimize risks, it said.
Brave operates three manufacturing sites in Taiwan and China.
The company’s net profit fell less than 1 percent year-on-year to NT$87.89 million, or NT$3.15 earnings per share, in the first half of the year, company data showed.
Last year’s net profit was NT$233.37 million, or NT$8.36 earnings per share.
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