Electronics component maker Lite-On Technology Corp (光寶科技) yesterday said it might see a double-digit annual growth percentage in profit and a single-digit growth percentage in revenue this year, thanks to the end of inventory digestion of its unprofitable camera lens modules and improving management efficiency.
“The company’s profitability was impacted by the unsatisfactory casing and camera lens module segments for smartphones. However, we have stemmed the losses and believe our net income could grow significantly this year,” Lite-On CEO Warren Chen (陳廣中) told a media briefing before the company’s year-end party.
Overall, Chen said the company expects quarter-by-quarter growth in revenue and gross margin this year.
Photo: Lo Chien-i, Taipei Times
Last year, consolidated revenue grew 8 percent annually to NT$230.66 billion (US$7.29 billion), the company said.
He said Lite-On’s profitability would grow in tandem with the increasing demand for its cloud-computing products, mobile devices, LED lighting and applications, solid-state storage, automotive electronics and game consoles.
Chen said the company expects a 15 percent sequential decline in sales this quarter from NT$60.11 billion due to seasonally slow demand.
Chen expects demand to pick up next quarter.
Chen expects shipments of the company’s camera lens modules for smartphones to regain strength next quarter, driven by increasing demand from Apple Inc’s competitors.
Lite-On will continue to invest in its LED lighting segment, as the performance of its streetlights and LED automotive applications were impressive last year, Chen said.
He said the company expects sales from this segment to increase 20 percent from the last year, driven by robust demand in the LED lighting market.
Lite-On also plans to invest in manufacturing of key components for industrial automation, due to rising labor costs in China, Chen said.
CIMB Securities Ltd analyst Felix Pan (潘俊宏) said he expects smartphone brands in China to speed up their specification upgrade cycles, especially for camera lens modules, which would benefit first-tier component makers, including Lite-On.
Pan said Asustek Computer Inc (華碩) showedcased its Zenfone Zoom, which has an optical zoom lens, at the Consumers Electronics Show in Las Vegas last month, and said that as Asustek’s key camera module supplier, Lite-On proved its superior technology and strategy in anticipating demand for the optical zoom function.
“We expect optical zoom lens modules to be the killer application this year and next year,” Pan said in a client note released on Jan. 7.
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