Acer Inc (宏碁), the world’s fourth-largest PC vendor, yesterday reported a third-quarter net profit of NT$68 million (US$2.3 million), up 21 percent quarter-on-quarter, and earnings per share (EPS) of NT$0.03, up 50 percent from the previous quarter.
However, operating income was NT$345 million in the third quarter, down 20 percent quarter-on-quarter and 127 percent year-on-year, while consolidated revenue was NT$104.4 billion, down 5.6 percent compared with the second quarter, but up 11.4 percent from a year ago, the company said in a statement.
That meant the company posted a worse-than-expected operating margin of 0.33 percent in the third quarter, compared with the 0.4 percent in the second quarter, the company's data showed.
The Taipei-based Acer did not provide explanations about its third-quarter results, nor did it give its business guidance for this quarter. The company is expected to release details of its results and an earnings outlook on Thursday, when it is scheduled to hold an investors’ conference in Taipei.
On Aug. 17, Acer chairman and chief executive officer Wang Jeng-tang (王振堂) said the company would likely have a flat performance in the third quarter compared with the second quarter.
He projected sequential growth of 5 percent to 10 percent in the fourth-quarter due to Windows 8 product launches, but said the company did not expect “explosive growth” for handheld devices running the Microsoft Corp’s new operating system.
Last week, market researcher International Data Corp said in a report that all PC vendors “are anxious to see the new operating system deliver on its promise of fueling momentum in the PC market.”
For the first three quarters of the year, Acer saw its consolidated revenue decline 5.7 percent to NT$328 billion from a year ago, while its operating income reached NT$916 million, up 114 percent year-on-year.
Acer stock dropped 0.9 percent to close at NT$26.95 in Taipei trading yesterday before the figures were released.
The company’s stock is down 0.19 percent this quarter and 24.72 percent this year, according to Taiwan Stock Exchange data.
(Additional reporting by George Liao)
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