Contract computer maker Clevo Co (藍天電腦) expects 1.4 million laptop shipments by the end of this year, up 9.38 percent from a year earlier, as Intel Corp’s central processing unit (CPU) shortage eases.
“Intel’s CPU shortage really affected us in the first two quarters of this year, but we have secured orders that should allow for stronger shipments this quarter,” a company official surnamed Chen (陳) told the Taipei Times by telephone.
Headquartered in New Taipei City, Clevo shipped 432,000 units last quarter, surpassing the company’s forecast of 400,000 units.
“We are aiming to ship up to 1.4 million units this year, up from our previous goal of 1.3 million,” Chen said, citing figures quoted by senior executive vice president Stephen Chien (簡義龍) at a press conference earlier yesterday.
Laptop shipments in the first three quarters of this year reached 1.03 million units, increasing 2 percent year-on-year, Chen said, adding that laptop sales in the period reached NT$11.3 billion (US$369.5 million), contributing 68.07 percent of the company’s overall revenue.
Last month, Clevo shipped 140,000 laptops and had NT$1.6 billion in sales, increasing monthly revenue by 23.82 percent year-on-year to NT$2 billion.
The outlook for shipments next year is optimistic, but the company is still in talks with Intel, Chen said, adding that potential shortages of passive components could pose a problem.
“We have used Advanced Micro Devices Inc’s CPUs on a handful of laptop models due to customer demand, as they are cheaper,” Chen said.
The company posted a third-quarter net profit of NT$453.46 million, more than doubling the NT$201.57 million of a year earlier. Earnings per share increased from NT$0.32 to NT$0.75.
Third-quarter revenue grew 19.4 percent year-on-year to NT$5.94 billion, of which laptop sales contributed NT$4.39 billion, but gross margin declined to 23 percent from 29 percent a year earlier.
In the first three quarters of the year, net profit declined 13.85 percent year-on-year to NT$1.23 billion, with earnings per share falling to NT$2, down from NT$2.26 a year earlier.
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