Smartphone maker HTC warns of 30pc profit slide
Taiwan’s HTC Corporation said third-quarter revenue could fall as much as 30 per cent from the previous three months, far worse than expected and underscoring deepening troubles for a smartphone maker with little prospect of an immediate turnaround.
Taiwan’s HTC Corporation said third-quarter revenue could fall as much as 30 per cent from the previous three months, far worse than expected and underscoring deepening troubles for a smartphone maker with little prospect of an immediate turnaround.
A delayed launch for its much-hyped flagship phone, the HTC One, has only exacerbated inventory troubles and highlighted its lack of scale when compared to Samsung Electronics and Apple at a time when the market for high-end phones is said to be approaching saturation.
HTC said it expects revenue this quarter of NT$50-60 billion (US$1.7-2 billion), far below a market consensus of NT$75.65 billion and its previous quarterly revenue of NT$70.7 billion.
While the company said it expected an improvement in the fourth quarter, analysts were sceptical about a significant near-term reversal of fortunes.
“Negative across the board,” said Daniel Chang, an analyst at Macquarie Securities. “It doesn’t seem like the company has any strategy that can turn this around.”