Nam Tai Electronics, Inc.: Q1 2012 Sales Down 33.9%, Gross Profit Margin at 3.3%

SHENZHEN, China, April 30, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Nam Tai Electronics, Inc. ("Nam Tai" or the "Company") (NYSE Symbol: NTE) today announced its unaudited results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2012.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

(In thousands of US Dollars, except per share data, percentages and as otherwise stated)

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION (UNAUDITED) IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF 2012

1. Quarterly Sales from Continuing Business Breakdown
(In thousands of US Dollars, except percentage information)

2. Key Highlights of Financial Position

OPERATING RESULTS

The net sales for the first quarter of 2012 and 2011 excluded the discontinued product business of low-end monochrome Liquid Crystal Display Panels ("LCDP"), the net sales of which were $11.5 million and $19.5 million, gross (loss) profit was ($1.5 million) and $2.6 million and operating (loss) income was ($3.5 million) and $1.2 million for the three months ended March 31, 2012 and March 31, 2011, respectively. Please see page 7 Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations for further details. This information has been published on the Company's website at http://www.namtai.com/quarterly/quarterly.htm in the quarterly earnings report of 1Q2012 on page 7, Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations.

The first quarter of 2012 was a transitional period between our discontinued product lines of lower-margin and smaller orders and our ramp up for production of high-resolution LCD modules ("LCM") for tablets and smartphones, which we anticipate will be characterized by higher-growth and larger orders.

Net sales for the first quarter of 2012 were $94.1 million, down 33.9% from net sales of $142.4 million for the same quarter of 2011. Gross profit was $3.1 million for the first quarter of 2012, decreased by 45.3% from $5.6 million for the same quarter last year. Gross profit margin for the first quarter of 2012 was 3.3%, down from 3.9% for the first quarter of 2011. This decrease was driven by the discontinuation of our product lines of lower-margin and smaller orders prior to our commencing production of larger quantities of high-resolution LCM for tablets and smartphones. The persistent delay in the production for the major new orders resulted from the continued refinement of some key components, provided by our customers' selected suppliers, the quality of which was not yet stabilized and pending customers' approval of their selected suppliers. It also resulted from modification of the specifications by the customers.

However, following the customer's instruction and complying with its request according to its order schedule, we have made the Company's labor force and corresponding facilities since December 2011 to begin the production for the major order of high-resolution LCM for tablets, for which we incurred costs and overhead expenses and further diminished our gross profit margin. Although the customer has partially compensated us for the incurred costs and overhead expenses caused by the delay of production, we have not fully recovered all the incurred cost and overhead expenses related to the postponement of production and lost revenue due to the delay.   

As a result, we had an operating loss of $2.9 million in the first quarter of 2012, compared with an operating loss of $0.9 million in the first quarter of 2011, and a net loss of $3.6 million in the first quarter of 2012, compared with a net income of $2.0 million in the first quarter of 2011.

EXPANSION PROJECTS

The Company has two separate site-expansion projects in progress, one in Shenzhen and one in Wuxi.  Currently, local government authorities have been actively working with the Company on these matters. The Company anticipates both lands will be released to us within this year and will be used for the improvement and expansion of our production facilities in both cities in the coming year.

COMPANY OUTLOOK

The Company's revenue decreased by 33.9% for the first quarter of 2012 when compared with the first quarter of 2011 excluding the contribution from the discontinued low-end monochrome LCDP product business. This significant revenue decline was mainly due to the transition from the discontinued product lines and the delay in our ramp up of production for the customers' new orders of high-resolution LCM for tablets and smartphones.

For the new order of tablet high-resolution LCM in Wuxi, the production could be further delayed due to the quality of key components provided by the customer's selected suppliers, the quality of which was unable to meet the customer's approval and these components are being tested by the customer.

For the new order from another customer of smartphone high-resolution LCM in Shenzhen, the customer's continuous modification of the specifications also caused a delay on the final sample approval. The schedule of production is largely subject to the customer's finalizing the product specifications and approval of its selected suppliers.

The Company reasonably believes that both customers have the capability to settle such matters. 

Due to these uncertainties, the Company may be unable to achieve its sales target in 2012.

However, a number of factors would affect our revenue and margins, including: components shortages, quality instability, delivery delays caused by the customers' selected suppliers; order cancellations, order postponements; the quantity of actually placed order may be different from the forecast order; the labor shortage or customers may request unit price reductions at anytime. It is also important to note that customers do not guarantee the utilization of our invested capacity.

The LCM assembly business is highly competitive. The increase in sales may not completely relieve pressure on our profit margins. Increasing inflation in China and appreciation of the Renminbi may further increase our labor cost, other overhead and material cost, thus increasing pressure on our margins, in addition to tax increases. The above risks could affect our anticipated sales and profit margins in 2012.

PAYMENT OF QUARTERLY DIVIDENDS FOR 2012

As announced on October 31, 2011, the Company set payment of quarterly dividends for 2012. The dividends for Q2 2012 were paid on April 20, 2012. The following table repeats and updates the previously announced schedule for declaration and payment of quarterly dividends in 2012.

The Company's decision to continue dividend payments in 2012 does not necessarily mean that dividend payments will continue thereafter. Whether future dividends will be declared will depend upon the Company's future growth and earnings, of which there can be no assurance, and the Company's cash flow needs for future expansion. Accordingly, there can be no assurance that cash dividends on the Company's common shares will be declared beyond those declared for 2012, what amounts of such dividends will be or whether such dividends, once declared for a specific period, will continue for any future period, or at all.

PROPOSED SCHEDULE OF RELEASE OF QUARTERLY FINANCIAL RESULTS FOR Q2 TO Q4 2012

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

The 2012 Annual General Meeting has been scheduled to be held on Wednesday, June 6, 2012 at 11:30 a.m. (Pacific Daylight Time) at The Library, Mandarin Oriental Hotel, 222 Sansome Street, San Francisco, CA 94104, United Sates.

The record date for determining shareholders entitled to vote at its 2011 annual meeting is April 30, 2012 and the proxy materials will be released to shareholders on or about May 4, 2012.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS AND FACTORS THAT COULD CAUSE OUR SHARE PRICE TO DECLINE

This news release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Actual results could differ materially from those projected in these forward-looking statements as a result of a number of factors, including: a deterioration of the markets for the Company's customers' products and the global economy as a whole, which could negatively impact the Company's revenue and the ability of the Company's customers to confirm prior orders or pay for the Company's products; customers' bankruptcy filings; the sufficiency of the Company's cash position and other sources of liquidity to operate its business; the negative effects of increased competition pressure on the Company's revenues and margins; a further delay in the Company's ability to take possession of land for development of additional production facilities, continued inflation and appreciation of the Renminbi against the US dollar; rising labor costs in China, changes in the labor supply and labor relations; and one or more of the factors discussed in "Item 3. Key Information — Risk Factors" in the Company's Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2011 as filed on March 16, 2012 with the Securities and Exchange Commission

The words "believe", "may", "will", "project", "continue", "anticipate", "intend", "expect", and similar words are intended to identify forward-looking statements.  Forward-looking statements include both the express and implied statements made in "Expansion Projects," "Company Outlook" and elsewhere in this news release, particularly statements regarding: management's intention to focus its business on key components assembly for telecommunication products and expectations expressed regarding the action and cooperation of the local PRC government as to our expansion projects in Shenzhen and Wuxi; the expansion of our manufacturing capacity to meet the growing demand for LCD modules we anticipate; the development of new product segments and new customer bases; the perception of increasing inflation and appreciation of the Renminbi; and the Company's ability to control costs and to invest in new technology.

For further information regarding risks and uncertainties associated with Nam Tai's business, operating results or financial condition, please refer to the "Operating and Financial Review and Prospects," "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Results of Operations and Financial Condition" and "Risk Factors" sections of Nam Tai's SEC filings, including, but not limited to, its annual reports on Form 20-F and Reports on Form 6-K containing releases of Nam Tai's quarterly financial results, copies of which may be obtained from Nam Tai's website at http://www.namtai.com or from the SEC's EDGAR website at http://www.sec.gov.

All information in this press release is as of April 30, 2012 in Shenzhen of the People's Republic of China except as otherwise indicated. Nam Tai does not undertake any duty, and should not be expected, to update any forward-looking statement to conform the statement to actual results or changes in Nam Tai's expectations, unless so required by law. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. The inclusion of any statement in this release does not constitute an admission by the Company or any other person that the events or circumstances described in such statements are material.

ABOUT NAM TAI ELECTRONICS, INC.
We are an electronics manufacturing and design services provider to a select group of the world's leading OEMs of telecommunications, consumer electronic, medical and automotive products. Through our electronics manufacturing services operations, we manufacture electronic components and subassemblies, including LCD modules, FPC subassemblies and image-sensor modules and PCBAs. These components are used in numerous electronic products, including mobile phones, laptop computers, digital cameras, electronic toys, handheld video game devices, and entertainment devices. We also manufacture finished products, including mobile phone accessories, home entertainment products and educational products. We assist our OEM customers in the design and development of their products and furnish full turnkey manufacturing services that utilize advanced manufacturing processes and production technologies.

Nam Tai Electronics, Inc. is a corporation registered in the British Virgin Islands and listed on the New York Stock Exchange (Symbol "NTE"). All the Company's operations are located in the People's Republic of China.

Please refer to the Nam Tai website (www.namtai.com) or the SEC website (www.sec.gov ) for Nam Tai press releases and financial statements.

SOURCE Nam Tai Electronics, Inc.