KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 26): Unisem (M) Bhd's net profit for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2021 (3QFY21) fell 20.64% to RM40.27 million from RM50.74 million a year ago, mainly due to lower revenue from the group's operations in Ipoh impacted by the closure of the plant and headcount limitation imposed during the quarter under review.
Consequently, earnings per share were down to 4.99 sen compared with 6.98 sen previously, according to the semiconductor assembly and test services provider's bourse filing on Tuesday.
Quarterly revenue increased by 2.42% to RM366.36 million against RM357.68 million last year.
The group also declared a dividend of two sen per share for the financial year ending Dec 31, 2021 (FY21), which will be paid on Nov 26.
On a quarterly basis, Unisem's net profit fell 26.3% from RM54.64 million in 2QFY21, while revenue declined by 8.92% from RM402.23 million.
For the nine-month period ended Sept 30, 2021 (9MFY21), Unisem's net profit jumped 71.41% to RM140.32 million from RM81.87 million on higher revenue achieved, higher interest income, and lower interest expense.
9MFY21 revenue rose 23.79% to RM1.14 billion from RM922.92 million on higher sales volume.
Despite the challenges operating in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, including manpower limitations, logistics and supply chain interruptions, Unisem noted the outlook of the semiconductor industry remains positive as the demand for chips across all end segments remains robust.
The directors of the group expect Unisem's performance to be satisfactory for the remaining period to the end of the financial year.
At Tuesday's market close, shares of Unisem increased by 0.98% or four sen to RM4.14 with some 2.29 million shares done.
At RM4.14, Unisem has a market capitalisation of RM6.68 billion. The stock has climbed 30.6% year-to-date from RM3.17.