Wafer probing service provider Chunghwa Precision Test Technology Co (CHPT, 中華精測) expects revenue to grow quarterly for the remainder of the year, as it is well-positioned to benefit from the robust demand for processors used in 5G smartphones and high-performance computing devices such as data centers.
The growth momentum was disrupted last quarter as CHPT’s engineers were prohibited from visiting customers’ factories for product qualification after the government raised the COVID-19 alert in May to level 3 to curb infections, the company said yesterday.
As the government eased some restrictions this week, the company expects to regain momentum from next month, as 5G-related infrastructure deployment, electric vehicles and remote work continue to stimulate demand.
Photo: CNA
“The COVID-19 outbreak has upended the normal seasonal patterns this year,” CHPT president Scott Huang (黃水可) told an online investors’ conference in Taipei. “The second and third quarters used to be the best quarters for the company. This year, each quarter would be higher than the previous one, probably making the fourth quarter the best quarter of the year.”
For the full year, revenue is expected to surpass last year’s NT$4.23 billion (US$151 million), thanks to growing demand for its wafer probe card business, Huang said.
The outlook for next year is positive, he added.
The company’s top client is expected to contribute more than 30 percent to its total revenue this year, filling the void left by two of its major customers last year, he said.
The wafer probe card business accounted for 35 percent of the company’s overall revenue last quarter, down from 41 percent the previous quarter due to COVID-19 restrictions, the Pingjhen District (平鎮), Taoyuan-based company said.
Net profit contracted 7.3 percent to NT$216 million last quarter from NT$233 million a year earlier, but rose 28.57 percent from NT$168 million in the previous quarter, it said.
Earnings per share dropped to NT$6.16, compared with NT$7.11 a year earlier and NT$5.11 in the first quarter.
Net profit in the first half of the year was NT$384 million, it said.
Gross margin fell to 53.8 percent last quarter from 54.1 percent in the first quarter and 54.1 percent in the second quarter last year.
Sweeping policy changes under US Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr are having a chilling effect on vaccine makers as anti-vaccine rhetoric has turned into concrete changes in inoculation schedules and recommendations, investors and executives said. The administration of US President Donald Trump has in the past year upended vaccine recommendations, with the country last month ending its longstanding guidance that all children receive inoculations against flu, hepatitis A and other diseases. The unprecedented changes have led to diminished vaccine usage, hurt the investment case for some biotechs, and created a drag that would likely dent revenues and
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