SINGAPORE (Aug 28): Micro-Mechanics, the manufacturer of high precision tools and parts for the semiconductor industry, reported earnings jumped 24.2% to a record $14.8 million for FY17 ended June from a year ago.
Micro-Mechanics says the group’s strong bottomline came on the back of revenue growth of 11.7% to $57.2 million, an expansion in gross profit margin to 57.4% and a tight rein on expense structure.
This reflected the strong upturn of the global semiconductor industry during the first six months of 2017 as statistics compiled by the Semiconductor Industry Association showed world-wide chip sales grew 20.8% to US$190.5 billion ($258.3 billion).
For the 4Q17 ended June, Micro-Mechanics’ earnings leapt 60.9% to reach a quarterly record of $4.6 million. Group revenue soared 19.5% to $15.4 million.
Micro-Mechanics is proposing to pay a final dividend of 4 cents per share and a special dividend of 1 cent per share on Nov 17. This will bring total dividends for FY17 to 8 cents per share compared to 6 cents for FY16.
Including these final and special dividends, the group would have distributed a total of 53.9 cents per share to shareholders since its public listing in 2003.
Chris Borch, CEO of Micro-Mechanics, says, “believe the robust first-half start to the year may foreshadow a prolonged period of stronger industry growth as chips become increasingly used in nearly every aspect of modern life. With factories in China, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, the USA and our sales office in Taiwan, Micro-Mechanics is well-positioned to provide fast, effective and local support to our customers in the world’s major semiconductor markets.”
As at June 30, Micro-Mechanics maintained a sound balance sheet with total assets of $65.6 million, shareholders’ equity of $54.8 million, cash and cash equivalents of $23.4 million and no bank borrowings.
As at 1.02pm, shares in Micro-Mechanics are trading 3 cents higher at $1.40.
