Lite-On Technology Corp (光寶科技) yesterday reported annual growth of 30.33 percent in net profit to NT$94.16 billion (US$3.07 billion) for last year, the strongest annual performance in the company’s history.
That figure translated into earnings per share of NT$4.05, compared with NT$3.07 in 2015, company data showed.
“Increasing demand for storage, optoelectronics and automotive electronics products supported the record-high earnings performance,” Lite-On investor and public relationships director Julia Wang (王玉玲) told investors at a quarterly conference in Taipei.
Lite-On said revenue last year rose 6 percent to NT$229.57 billion.
Sales of storage products, which accounted for 19 percent of the firm’s total revenue, increased 30 percent, while optoelectronics sales expanded 3 percent to contribute 24 percent of total revenue, the data showed.
Gross margin grew by 0.63 percentage points to 13.6 percent, while operating margin expanded by 1.51 percentage points to 5.5 percent, Wang said, attributing the growth to a better product portfolio and improvements in cost control.
The company said its board authorized a cash dividend of NT$2.92 per share, which represents a payout ratio of 72.09 percent — similar to last year’s 72 percent — and suggests a dividend yield of 5.66 percent based on Lite-On’s closing share price of NT$51.5 in Taipei trading yesterday.
Revenue is expected to drop by as much as 25 percent this quarter due to seasonal factors, but would remain flat from NT$51.54 billion in the same period last year, CEO Warren Chen (陳廣中) said.
However, Chen forecast that revenue would climb quarterly and surpass last year’s level.
“Sales will pick up from next quarter on contribution from the optoelectronics segment, especially dual-camera modules used in smartphones,” he said, citing an order forecast from Lite-On’s Chinese handset clients.
The firm commanded a 12 percent share of the global camera module market, serving clients such as Huawei Technologies Co (華為) and ZTE Corp (中興).
Lite-On is converting some single-camera module production lines to dual-camera module manufacturing to meet rising demand, business division chief executive Danny Liao (廖學福) said, but declined to disclose the scope of the conversion.
The company approved NT$6 billion in capital expenditure for this year, with the majority of the funds to be spent on technology conversion and equipment installation for dual-camera modules, Wang said.
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