Foxsemicon Integrated Technology Inc (京鼎), a semiconductor manufacturing and inspection equipment maker, posted a 19 percent year-on-year decline in net profit for last quarter as semiconductor companies slowed capacity expansion amid a slump caused by excessive inventory.
Net profit plunged to NT$207.82 million (US$6.75 million) in the final quarter of last year, compared with NT$256.89 million in the same period a year earlier, hitting the lowest level in 10 quarters.
Earnings per share dropped to NT$2.54, from NT$3.3 a year earlier, the company said in a financial statement submitted to the Taiwan Stock Exchange.
Revenue for last quarter tumbled 17.6 percent year-on-year from NT$2.33 billion to NT$1.92 billion.
The decline is likely to continue, as Foxsemicon last month posted an annual reduction of 13.37 percent in revenue to NT$634.05 million for January.
For the whole of last year, Foxsemicon saw its net profit climb 9.43 percent to NT$1.16 billion, from NT$1.07 billion in 2017, benefiting primarily from rapid capacity expansions by Chinese semiconductor companies.
Earnings per share last year rose to NT$14.06, compared with NT$13.63 in 2017.
In December last year, Foxsemicon’s board of directors approved investments totaling US$33 million on two newly established semiconductor equipment makers in Nanjing, China, where Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) is building an advanced 12-inch fab.
Foxsemicon, headquartered in Miaoli County, is 15.49 percent owned by Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) through the iPhone assembler’s fully owned investment companies.
Foxsemicon’s board of directors on Wednesday approved the distribution of a cash dividend of NT$7 per common share, representing a payout ratio of 49.79 percent.
The dividend distribution is subject to shareholders’ approval at an annual meeting scheduled for May 29.
The board also gave the go-ahead to the appointment of Young Liu (劉揚偉) as the successor to Foxsemicon chairman Liu Yin-kuang (劉應光), who has tendered his resignation.
Young Liu is the head of Hon Hai’s semiconductor subgroup and doubles as a board director of Sharp Corp.
The personnel adjustment took effect on Wednesday.
Since the beginning of this year, Foxsemicon shares have jumped 9.27 percent and closed at NT$141.5 on Wednesday, outperforming the TAIEX, which has increased 6.8 percent in the same period.
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