Genius Electronic Optical Co (玉晶光), which supplies camera lenses to Apple Inc and Huawei Technologies Co (華為), yesterday gave bullish business prospects for next year, attributable to wider adoption of pricey periscope camera lenses for more smartphones beyond premium models.
That would be a key upgrade in smartphone camera specifications as Genius’ customers at present only equip their flagship phones with such high-end lenses. As customers are mulling expanding the usage of periscope camera lenses to their mid-range models, Genius considers the periscope camera lens business a great boon.
“We are optimistic about the company’s business outlook next year,” Genius chairman Jones Chen (陳天慶) told an online investors’ conference.
Photo: CNA
Genius’ optimism is also built on an upbeat forecast that its Chinese smartphone customers are to see a jump in shipments next year, the company said.
As Genius is seeing an uptrend in demand for its camera lenses used in premium smartphones and some high-end notebook computers, the company is planning to boost the capacity of camera lenses used in mobile phones and virtual-reality (VR) headsets, company president Lee Kuo (郭英理) said.
“Our capacity is really tight now,” Kuo said.
No details about next year’s capital spending were disclosed yesterday, as next year’s budget is still being planned, he said.
Kuo said that VR headsets are a new driving force for its camera lens shipments, as a premium VR headset requires about 10 camera lenses. A mid-range model needs six, while entry-level VR headsets have two or three, he said.
Genius is confident about the outlook of VR devices in the long run, as its customers are developing next-generation products without being discouraged by slow uptake in the initial stage. One of its customers is to unveil a new VR headset next quarter, the company said.
Another customer inked an agreement with China’s Tencent Holdings Ltd (騰訊) to sell its VR headsets in China, which bodes well for the sales, Genius said without identifying Meta as the customer.
VR camera lenses made up about 20 percent of Genius’ total revenue last quarter, it said.
Genius yesterday gave a positive business outlook for this quarter. Revenue this quarter would have better performance than previous fourth quarters in the company’s history, Chen said.
Gross margin this quarter might be higher than last quarter’s 35 percent, attributable to a better yield rate for camera lenses used in VR headsets, he said.
Last quarter’s gross margin fell short of investors’ expectations as the company shipped more VR camera lens modules, which delivered a lower margin due to a less favorable yield rate, smaller production scale and component pass-through costs, the company said.
Commenting on the impact of a patent infringement suit lodged by rival Largan Precision Co (大立光) in Taipei earlier this week, Genius yesterday said the legal disputes did not affect customers’ orders.
Genius said it holds more than 1,000 patents related to the manufacturing of optical products.
Genius’ net profit dipped 21 percent to NT$1.93 billion (US$61 million) during the first three quarters of this year, compared with NT$2.43 billion in the same period last year. Earnings per share dropped to NT$17.02 from NT$21.57.
Gross margin sank to 33.33 percent during the nine-month period, from 38.6 percent in the prior year.
Intel Corp chief executive officer Lip-Bu Tan (陳立武) is expected to meet with Taiwanese suppliers next month in conjunction with the opening of the Computex Taipei trade show, supply chain sources said on Monday. The visit, the first for Tan to Taiwan since assuming his new post last month, would be aimed at enhancing Intel’s ties with suppliers in Taiwan as he attempts to help turn around the struggling US chipmaker, the sources said. Tan is to hold a banquet to celebrate Intel’s 40-year presence in Taiwan before Computex opens on May 20 and invite dozens of Taiwanese suppliers to exchange views
Application-specific integrated circuit designer Faraday Technology Corp (智原) yesterday said that although revenue this quarter would decline 30 percent from last quarter, it retained its full-year forecast of revenue growth of 100 percent. The company attributed the quarterly drop to a slowdown in customers’ production of chips using Faraday’s advanced packaging technology. The company is still confident about its revenue growth this year, given its strong “design-win” — or the projects it won to help customers design their chips, Faraday president Steve Wang (王國雍) told an online earnings conference. “The design-win this year is better than we expected. We believe we will win
Quanta Computer Inc (廣達) chairman Barry Lam (林百里) is expected to share his views about the artificial intelligence (AI) industry’s prospects during his speech at the company’s 37th anniversary ceremony, as AI servers have become a new growth engine for the equipment manufacturing service provider. Lam’s speech is much anticipated, as Quanta has risen as one of the world’s major AI server suppliers. The company reported a 30 percent year-on-year growth in consolidated revenue to NT$1.41 trillion (US$43.35 billion) last year, thanks to fast-growing demand for servers, especially those with AI capabilities. The company told investors in November last year that
Power supply and electronic components maker Delta Electronics Inc (台達電) yesterday said it plans to ship its new 1 megawatt charging systems for electric trucks and buses in the first half of next year at the earliest. The new charging piles, which deliver up to 1 megawatt of charging power, are designed for heavy-duty electric vehicles, and support a maximum current of 1,500 amperes and output of 1,250 volts, Delta said in a news release. “If everything goes smoothly, we could begin shipping those new charging systems as early as in the first half of next year,” a company official said. The new
RSS