ASMPT (0522) Q3 2017 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Record Q3 and 9M billings and net profits, excluding the one-time non-cash gain from the 2011 SMT placement equipment acquisition; broad strength across all three segments.

• Q3 revenue reached $654 million, up 21.8% YoY and 15.5% QoQ; Q3 net profit was HKD 862.8 million, up 49.3% YoY and 14.9% QoQ.

Financial highlights

• Q3 group bookings were $574.4 million, up 31.8% YoY and down 13.1% QoQ, with the sequential decline attributed to seasonality.

• Group gross margin was 14.6% in Q3 and 9M 2017, up 123 bps and 295 bps YoY, respectively.

• Q3 and 9M group billings and net profits set records after excluding the one-time non-cash acquisition gain recognized in 2011.

Outlook and guidance

• Q4 billing expected to deliver low- to high-teens YoY growth, with positive YoY growth in all three segments; Q4 gross margin expected below Q3 on lower volume.

• Q4 bookings expected to grow at a single-digit YoY rate; all three segments expected to have lower QoQ bookings, with a milder decline in Back-end Equipment and Materials than SMT.

• 2017 expected to be a record year; no sharp decline in 2018 active-alignment demand anticipated, though growth is not expected to match 2017.

• Customers remained positive on 2018 demand; management cited capacity expansions and new projects, while noting Q1 bookings were difficult to predict around the late Chinese New Year timing.