31.7% gain in a day. :-) That is one fine 190 million sold camera chips. GM is still too low. No competition however. IPhone, IPAD2 and all smartphones and tablets...... with cameras has to have Omnivision's products.
forbes.com
Associated Press
OmniVision soars on strong 3Q results
By The Associated Press, 02.25.11, 02:03 PM EST
Shares of OmniVision Technologies Inc. soared Friday afternoon after the maker of image sensors said its third-quarter profit rose almost eight-fold, beating Wall Street expectations.
THE SPARK: The company, which makes image sensors used in Apple Inc.'s iPhone and other consumer electronics, said its net income rose to $44.7 million, or 75 cents per share. Not including one-time items such as stock-based compensation, the company earned 84 cents per share. That beat analysts' average estimate for adjusted earnings of 58 cents per share, a FactSet survey showed.
Revenue rose 69 percent to $265.7 million.
The company also issued a better-than-expected forecast for the current quarter. It expects to earn between 57 cents to 70 cents per share. Analysts had predicted earnings of 45 cents per share.
THE BIG PICTURE: OmniVision makes high-resolution sensors that allow cell phones to take photos as sharp as those taken with a standalone digital camera. The company's booming sales reflect a strong demand for smart phones, and serve as a reminder that consumers are increasingly relying on do-it-all smart phones for even more than making phone calls, checking e-mail and surfing the Web.
THE ANALYSIS: Needham & Co. analyst Rajvindra Gill backed his rating of "Strong Buy" and boosted his price target to $45 from $40. OmniVision's soaring revenue should squash Wall Street chatter that the company has been losing market share, he said in an interview. In addition to the iPhone, OmniVision's sensors can be found in smart phones made by HTC Corp. and Motorola Mobility Inc.
And, he said, the fact that it plans to ramp up production of its new, eight-megapixel camera sensor during the summer suggests that OmniVision will once again partner with Apple when it starts selling the next generation of the iPhone, most likely in June or July.
For now, Gill estimates that sales of the Verizon iPhone, which went on sale this month, could add $25 million to $30 million to OmniVision's annual revenue.
Finally, OmniVision was able to lift its profit by increasing its gross margins, Gill said. The company has been selling more high-resolution five- and eight-megapixel camera sensors, as opposed to sensors with lower resolutions. These higher-resolution sensors fetch three to four times more money, according to Gill.
THE STOCK: Up $6.14, or 25.7 percent, to $29.95 in afternoon trading Friday. |
