Chip testing and packaging services provider Powertech Technology Inc (力成科技) yesterday said it expects revenue to rebound sequentially this quarter and next, driven by recovering demand for DRAM chips and chips used in artificial intelligence (AI) applications.
The company said the pickup in memorychip packaging and testing services would fuel growth, as customers are close to clearing their excess inventories.
In addition, the company is seeing strong demand this quarter from Micron Technology Inc, which outsources a majority of its DRAM chip packaging and testing work to Powertech, as the US firm focuses on producing high-bandwidth memory products for AI servers.
Photo: Grace Hung, Taipei Times
“We are benefiting from a long-term partnership with the company,” Powertech chief executive officer Boris Hsieh (謝永達) told investors yesterday. “Overall, we expect the second quarter to perform better than the first, and the third quarter to surpass the second.”
However, Hsieh cautioned that uncertainty surrounding US “reciprocal” tariffs poses a risk, as Washington’s tariff and trade policies could stoke inflation and weaken end-market demand.
The DRAM segment accounted for 21 percent of Powertech’s revenue in the March quarter, following the NAND flash memory segment at 24 percent and the logic chip segment at 47 percent.
Powertech also sees robust demand for logic chip packaging and testing services, driven by the rapid uptake of AI-enabled applications across sectors from PCs to cars, Hsieh said.
To meet rising demand, Greatek Electronics Inc (超豐), Powertech’s logic chip packaging and design service arm, has scrambled to expand its production capacity, Hsieh said.
Orders received by Greatek this month have surged to their highest level since the COVID-19 pandemic, as customers shift business to Greatek and other companies included on the US “whitelist,” he added.
“Rush orders are flooding in during the second quarter,” Hsieh said. “Due to uncertainty about the US’ semiconductor tariff policy, customers have proactively boosted their inventory of finished products to prepare for future policy changes.”
However, the momentum could ebb after June, as customers might become more cautious about building their inventories, he said.
The company expects AI-related revenue to increase this quarter, extending the growth momentum seen last quarter, when AI chip packaging and testing services accounted for 10 percent of total revenue, up from 8 percent in the previous quarter.
In addition, Powertech has made faster-than-expected progress in developing fan-out panel-level packaging (FOPLP) technology, achieving a better-than-anticipated yield rate, Hsieh said.
The company has outpaced industry peers, including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) and ASE Technology Holding Co (日月光投控), in advancing FOPLP development, he added.
Powertech yesterday reported its weakest quarterly net profit in 8 quarters, attributable to weak demand for packaging and testing services for DRAM and NAND chips.
The first quarter was the trough of the current downcycle, it said.
Net profit fell 18.1 percent to NT$1.58 billion (US$49 million), down from NT$1.93 billion in the previous quarter. Earnings per share (EPS) dropped to NT$1.58 from NT$2.04.
On an annual basis, net profit dropped 25.1 percent from NT$2.11 billion, or EPS of NT$2.32, as the company completed the divestment of its DRAM manufacturing facility in the Chinese city of Xian last year.
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