Shares of Largan Precision Co (大立光), a smartphone camera lens supplier to Apple Inc, yesterday moved sharply lower and ended below NT$5,000 amid lingering concerns over shipments of Apple Inc’s iPhone X, dealers said.
Institutional investors remained on the sell side because of concern over production yields at Largan’s Taichung facility, they said.
Largan shares yesterday closed down 4.19 percent at NT$4,800, with 917,000 shares changing hands, underperforming the Taiwan Stock Exchange index, which rose 0.48 percent to 10,651.11 points.
It was the first time the stock closed below NT$5,000 since July 7, when its closing price stood at NT$4,960.
The stock remained the most expensive on the local equity market.
In the early morning session, Largan shares fell and remained around the NT$5,000 level as the broader market traded in a narrow range.
Downward pressure on the stock increased in the middle of the morning, driving the stock well below NT$5,000, where it stayed until the end of the session, dealers said.
“It seems that concern over iPhone X sales has been on the rise, prompting foreign institutional investors to turn cautious toward Largan, one of the most important suppliers to Apple,” Ta Ching Securities Co (大慶證券) analyst Andy Hsu (許博傑) said.
“Glitches following an upgrade of the iPhone’s operating system have raised worries over iPhone sales, which dealt another blow to Largan shares throughout the session,” Hsu said, referring to the news that an iOS upgrade caused screen-blackening and continual respringing.
In a research note released yesterday, a US brokerage reduced its price target for Largan from NT$4,200 to NT$4,100, but left its “neutral” rating unchanged.
There has been speculation that Largan has encountered technological bottlenecks in its new production lines in Taichung, which compromised sales growth momentum last month.
Over the weekend, Largan repeated that sales for last month were expected to stay little changed from October.
Dealers said recent and continual institutional selling of the stock has made many investors more cautious about the company.
Friday last week was the 17th consecutive session that the stock faced net selling, with foreign and local institutional investors recording aggregate net sales of 176,000 Largan shares.
“However, I remain upbeat about Largan’s competitiveness. So I expect that when the stock falls below the NT$5,000 mark, bargain hunters will turn active, paving the way for a rebound soon,” Hsu said.
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