Vertical Divider

AUO Down But Not Out
February 04, 2019
 
AU Optronicsreported Q419 and full year results of NT$77.2b and NT$307.6b, down 4.4% and down 9.8% Y/Y, respectively.  4Q gross margin was 5.3% with net profit of NT$0.28b and basic EPS of NT$0.03, but operating results were negative, showing a loss of NT$1.45b and a negative operating margin of 1.9%.  The display segment’s operating margin was1.7%. AUO painted a rather bleak expectation for 2019.  “As new capacity continues to ramp up, oversupply may become a display industry normal in the next few years.  Furthermore, there could be uncertainties coming from both global economy and international trade situations.” and while neither of these situations are new or unexpected, they do force panel producers to focus on specific product categories or technologies