Catcher Technology Co (可成科技), a metal casing supplier for Apple Inc’s iPhones, yesterday forecast that revenue and profitability this quarter would significantly expand annually and quarterly on continued rising demand for smartphones, notebook computers and tablets.
“There is no doubt that Catcher will deliver very strong results this quarter,” spokesman James Wu (巫俊毅) told an investors’ conference in Taipei.
Catcher’s sales last month ballooned 51.5 percent annually to NT$12.39 billion (US$410.67 million), the highest monthly figure since the company was founded in 1984, Wu said, adding that the firm forecast revenue this and next month to maintain a similar high level of performance.
Cumulative revenue totaled NT$72.89 billion in the first 10 months of this year, surging 15.2 percent from NT$63.27 billion in the same period last year, he said.
“This year has been a pretty good year for Catcher, as we predicted at the beginning of the year, and we are optimistic that next year will be another good year, as order visibility for the three product lines has extended to the first half of next year,” company chairman Allen Hung (洪水樹) told investors.
Catcher’s three main product lines are smartphones, notebooks and tablets.
While next quarter is to have slightly less working days than this quarter due to the Lunar New Year holiday, Catcher’s production capacity utilization should remain at a high level, Hung said.
The firm expects to launch a new product line in the first half of next year and adopt new casing materials for existing product lines, both of which would lend support to the company’s performance, he said.
He declined to confirm whether the new product line is smartwatches, as Catcher has reportedly tapped into the supply chain for the Apple Watch.
Hung said only that the new product is a high-end consumer electronics device.
Due to the robust order forecast, Horng said capital expenditure next year will likely be similar to this year’s more than NT$10 billion in order to meet rising demand from clients.
His remarks came after Catcher reported NT$7.38 billion in net income for last quarter, an annual growth of 65.2 percent and an 80.5 percent quarterly increase, as well as the company’s second-highest quarterly figure.
Gross margin last quarter retreated 0.04 percentage points annually to 42.6 percent, while operating margin contracted 0.16 percentage points annually to 33.4 percent, which Catcher attributed to a different product portfolio.
Net profit for the first three quarters of this year rose 8.6 percent annually to NT$13.6 billion, or earnings per share of NT$17.62, the company said.
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