Shares of Lite-On Technology Corp (光寶科技) yesterday outpaced the broader market by rising 1.67 percent, after the electronics component maker’s surprise announcement on Wednesday that it is selling its camera module for smartphones business to Hong Kong-based LuxVisions Innovation Ltd (立景創新) for US$360 million.
LuxVisions was founded by the Wang family of China-based Luxshare Precision Industry Co (立訊精密).
Lite-On’s share price surged 3.69 percent to NT$43.55 shortly after the market opened before paring its gains to close at NT$42.70 in Taipei tading.
Lite-On said in a press release on Wednesday evening — a day after it told an earnings conference that its camera module business would break even this year — that the deal with LuxVisions involves the business unit’s operations and assets, including inventory, manufacturing equipment, 5,000 employees, technology, intellectual property, clients and supplier relationships, and accrued warranties.
Aside from a cash payment of US$360 million, Lite-On will receive a 10 percent stake in LuxVisions.
The company expects to complete the transaction before the end of next quarter, Lite-On investor relations official Julia Wang (王玉玲) said by telephone yesterday.
“We believe the decision to sell the business will improve Lite-On’s product portfolio, as the profit margin on camera modules used in smartphones has been below the corporate average for years due to intensified competition in the industry,” Julia Wang said.
“Lite-On had been discussing the deal for some time... The reason we did not share it with investors on Tuesday was because the board meeting was held a day later,” she said.
Lite-On is selling only its camera module business for mobile devices; it still operates and manufactures camera modules used in automobile, virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and 3D sensing products, which enjoy higher margins, she said.
“It is a win-win situation for Lite-On,” she said.
Yuanta Securities Investment Consulting Co (元大投顧) analyst Jeff Pu (蒲得宇) said in a note yesterday that by shifting its focus to higher-value products, Lite-On’s earnings visibility and margin profile would significantly improve, leading to a re-rating for the company.
Lite-On chief executive officer Warren Chen (陳廣中) on Tuesday told investors that the camera module unit’s revenue should see quarterly improvements and reach between NT$38 billion and NT$40 billion (US$1.3 billion and US$1.36 billion) this year.
The company expects its overall revenue this year to rise by a single-digit percentage from last year’s NT$214.57 billion, supported by its camera module, solid-state drive and power management businesses.
Lite-On will continue to focus on cloud computing, LED components, LED outdoor and automotive lighting, automotive electronics, biomedical technology and industrial automation, Julia Wang said.
The domestic unit of the Chinese-owned, Dutch-headquartered chipmaker Nexperia BV will soon be able to produce semiconductors locally within China, according to two company sources. Nexperia is at the center of a global tug-of-war over critical semiconductor technology, with a Dutch court in February ordering a probe into alleged mismanagement at the company. The geopolitical tussle has disrupted supply chains, with some carmakers reportedly forced to cut production due to chip shortages. Local production would allow Nexperia’s domestic arm, Nexperia Semiconductors (China) Ltd (安世半導體中國), to bypass restrictions in place since October on the supply of silicon wafers — etched with tiny components to
Taiwan’s foreign exchange reserves fell below the US$600 billion mark at the end of last month, with the central bank reporting a total of US$596.89 billion — a decline of US$8.6 billion from February — ending a three-month streak of increases. The central bank attributed the drop to a combination of factors such as outflows by foreign institutional investors, currency fluctuations and its own market interventions. “The large-scale outflows disrupted the balance of supply and demand in the foreign exchange market, prompting the central bank to intervene repeatedly by selling US dollars to stabilize the local currency,” Department of Foreign
Taiwan is open to joining a global liquefied natural gas (LNG) program if one is created, but on the condition that countries provide delivery even in a scenario where there is a conflict with China, an energy department official said yesterday. While Taiwan’s priority is to have enough LNG at home, the nation is open to exploring potential strategic reserves in other countries such as Japan or South Korea, Energy Administration Deputy Director-General Chen Chung-hsien (陳崇憲) said. While the LNG market does not have a global reserve for emergencies like that of oil, the concept has been raised a few times —
AI-FUELED DEMAND: The company has been benefiting from the skyrocketing prices for DRAM chips amid the AI frenzy, especially its core product — DDR4 DRAM chips DRAM chipmaker Nanya Technology Corp (南亞科技) yesterday reported that its revenue for the first quarter surged 582.91 percent to NT$49.09 billion (US$1.54 billion) from NT$7.19 billion a year earlier, as the supply crunch caused chip price spikes. Last quarter’s figure is the highest on record. On a quarterly basis, revenue jumped 63.14 percent from NT$30.09 billion, the company said. In January, Nanya Technology expected global DRAM supply scarcity to continue through the first half of 2028, thanks to strong demand for artificial intelligence (AI) applications. Market researcher TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) forecast prices of standard DRAM chips would rise between 58 percent and 63
RSS