Touch panel supplier Wintek Corp (勝華) yesterday said sales for last month declined for the third consecutive month as the company faced rising competition as well as challenges in lifting the yield rate of full-laminated one-glass solution (OGS) products.
Consolidated revenue fell 13.21 percent to NT$7.36 billion (US$252.6 million) last month from NT$8.48 billion in October.
Last month’s figure represented a 24.63 percent decline from NT$9.76 billion for the same period of last year, the company said in a statement.
The Greater Taichung-based company did not elaborate on its latest sales results, but analysts have forecast that Wintek would probably report lower revenue from October because of emerging competition from other makers of glass-film panels and lower yields for its mid-sized OGS products.
The company is also likely to see revenue decline 15 percent this quarter from last quarter as sales of Apple’s previous-generation iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S fell, while bigger rival TPK Holdings Co (宸鴻) may show recovering sales momentum this quarter, analysts said.
“TPK has a dominant market share in the tablet market and touchscreen PC market, whereas Wintek’s order wins remain limited. A potential change in the technology used in next year’s 9.7-inch iPad places another downside risk on Wintek,” JPMorgan Securities (Taiwan) Ltd said in a report on Nov. 6.
In the first 11 months of the year, accumulated revenue was NT$95.16 billion, up 15.22 percent from NT$82.59 billion during the same period last year, Wintek said in the statement.
Meanwhile, handset keypad maker Ichia Technologies Inc (毅嘉科技) reported its sales last month rose 13.67 percent from October to hit the highest level this year. The company also manufactures other electronic components, such as flexible printed circuit (FPC) boards used in smartphones, tablets and other devices.
In a filing submitted to the Taiwan Stock Exchange on Saturday, the company based in Linkou District (林口), New Taipei City (新北市) said its consolidated revenue was NT$948.49 million last month, with sales of integrated modules for metal and plastic mechanical parts at NT$233 million and sales of FPC integrated components, the main growth driver, at NT$728 million.
Last month’s figure compared with NT$834.45 million in the previous month. However, it fell 37.28 percent from NT$1.51 billion a year earlier, according to the filing.
“Ichia’s consolidated November top line came in above expectations at NT$948 million. The company’s fourth-quarter bottom line growth outlook appears intact due to sizzling FPC shipments amid red-hot Nexus 7 sales,” Fubon Securities Investment Services Co (富邦投顧) analyst Allen Hsieh (謝卓庭) said yesterday.
Hsieh said he expected Ichia to see additional sales momentum this quarter, thanks to shipments of new products to BlackBerry maker Research In Motion Ltd (RIM).
For the first 11 months, consolidated revenue totaled NT$8.18 billion, down 5.55 percent from NT$8.66 billion a year earlier, the filings showed.
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