Unisem Q2 profit up 12% on higher sales, US dollar
PETALING JAYA: Unisem (M) Bhd’s net profit advanced in the second quarter ended June 30 on the back of higher sales in US dollars and a better exchange rate.
In a filing with Bursa Malaysia, the semiconductor manufacturing company said it had posted an 11.8% gain in net profit to RM42.1mil for the second quarter from RM37.63mil a year ago.
Revenue for the quarter increased 14% to RM365.7mil from RM320.9mil previously.
Unisem has recommended an interim dividend of 3.5 sen per share tax-exempt for the quarter, targeted to be paid on Sept 8.
Cumulatively, Unisem’s net profit for the first six months ended June 30 increased by 20% to RM87mil from RM72.3mil a year ago.
The increase in bottomline was supported by a surge in the company’s topline, which rose 13.7% to RM726mil from RM638.7mil last year. Shares in Unisem traded four sen higher yesterday at RM4.07.
CIMB Research has raised its earnings forecast for Unisem by 11%-33% for financial year 2017 (FY17)-FY19, driven by capacity expansion and a better product mix.
“Our stronger earnings growth forecasts are supported by capacity expansion in Chengdu, China, as well as improving operating efficiency in Batam, Indonesia, and steady earnings growth from Ipoh,” CIMB Research said in a recent report.
“We see stronger-than-expected earnings versus the consensus estimates, the depreciation of the ringgit against the US dollar and a higher dividend payout as potential catalysts for the stock,” it added.
Global economic recovery would drive semiconductor sales for this year, with the Asia Pacific expected to record a 12.4% growth, according to World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS).
CIMB Research said, quoting WSTS, that the global semiconductor industry is on track for another record-breaking year in 2017, after recording an all-time high sales of US$339bil in 2016.
“We believe this bodes well for Unisem, as the company has always benefited from stronger semiconductor industry demand in the past,” CIMB Research said.
The global sales of semiconductors rose nearly one-quarter in June 2017 to US$32.6bil (RM140bil) from a year ago, boosted by sales in the Americas, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association.