Sept 10 (Askume) – British semiconductor wafer maker IQE (IQE.L) said on Tuesday it expects annual profit to be lower than analysts expected as some of its markets are slow to recover from oversupply, sending its shares down as much as 13%.
IQE, whose “epitaxial wafers” are used in iPhone facial recognition sensors, expects full-year adjusted core profit to be below analysts’ forecast of 11.1 million pounds to 16.6 million pounds ($14.5 million to $21.7 million).
Chief Executive Americo Lemos told Askume in a phone interview: “We expect the wireless market to continue to improve, helped by new product launches; our photonics business will be slightly stable after the second half.”
IQE shares were down 13% by 0827 GMT.
The Cardiff-based company’s core profit for the six months to June 30 was £6.6m, compared with a core loss of £5.7m in the previous year.
Photonics, the division of IQE that makes epitaxial wafers, which accounted for more than half of total sales last year, reported a 4% decline in revenue in the first half.
To capitalise on the artificial intelligence (AI) boom, IQE is investing in systems to enable more efficient data transfers from data centres, which is crucial for generative AI applications.
In July, IQE said it planned to apply for an initial public offering of its Taiwan operations on the local stock exchange but would retain control of the unit.
IQE said it had received positive feedback from the first round of investor participation in the region. ($1 = 0.7645 British pounds)
