Shares in Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) and Pegatron Corp (和碩), assemblers of Apple Inc iPhones, closed at NT$80.8 and NT$72 respectively yesterday, both falling from their closing prices from a year earlier.
Hon Hai’s year-end closing price dropped 7.96 percent from NT$87.9 on Dec. 31, 2014, while Pegatron’s declined 1.37 percent from NT$73 over the same period.
The TAIEX’s electronics category fell 11.8 percent.
Although the two iPhone assembler’s stock price contracted from a year earlier, their revenues continued to mark new records respectively.
Thanks to the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus assembling business, Hon Hai’s November revenues of NT$517.5 billion (US$15.65 billion) were the highest monthly sales result in the company’s history.
In the first 11 months of last year, Hon Hai’s combined revenues totaled NT$4.73 trillion, jumping 10.19 percent from NT$3.69 trillion in the same period in 2014.
The contract electronics giant’s accumulated net income reached NT$96.51 billion, or earnings per share of NT$6.03, in the first three quarters of last year, representing an annual increase of 28.56 percent from a year earlier.
Pegatron reported its highest monthly result of NT$120.02 billion in October last year, growing 36.51 percent year-on-year and 13.25 percent month-on-month.
Although Pegatron’s November sales plunged 30.77 percent monthly to NT$121.35 billion due to a higher monthly base, the company’s combined revenues of NT$NT$1.09 trillion in the first 11 months of last year were up 21.33 percent from a year earlier.
The differences between Hon Hai’s and Pegatron’s business performance and their stock prices reflected investors’ concern over the sales of Apple’s iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus.
Various speculations, such as Apple reportedly cutting orders or Hon Hai ordering staff leave due to a lack of iPhone sales, have not ceased since the launch of the new iPhones in September last year.
Pegatron chairman Tung Tzu-hsien (童子賢) on Nov. 28 told reporters that the market has been too focused on sales of new-generation iPhones.
He said the market neglected to consider that the combined demand for new and old iPhone models has not diminished.
Tung said Pegatron’s combined orders for new and old iPhones have grown significantly from 2014.
In light of the growing demand from the firm’s major client, Tung said Pegatron is to expand the production capacity of its plant in Kunshan, China, this year.
Pegatron said the company’s capital expenditure this year is expected to be about NT$300 million, with the majority of the funds to be used to purchase equipment and pay staff.
Last year the firm spent NT$300 million, mainly on plant construction in China, Pegatron said.
Hon Hai chairman Terry Gou (郭台銘) told shareholders that the company’s goal is to grow 10 percent in annual revenues every year.
The chairman did not offer a outlook for this year, but given that Hon Hai’s India plants received smartphone assembling orders from China’s Gionee Communication Equipment Co Ltd (金立), Oppo Mobile Telecommunications Corp (歐珀移動), Xiaomi Inc (小米), and Taiwan’s Asustek Computer Inc (華碩) last year, those companies are expected to boost Hon Hai’s sales this year.
The sales of Apple’s iPad Pro, which is solely assembled by Hon Hai, is also to make contributions to the firm this year, he said.
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