LG Display met with Wall Street this month to discuss their Q3 2012 results. Panel shipments rose by 7% and ASP rose as the premium product proportion increase. LG Display recorded their highest quarterly revenue (up 10% quarter-on-quarter). Operating profit margin was 3%, while EBITDA margin was 19%.
So, all on all, a good quarter. The TV segment represent 47% of LG Display revenue, followed by monitors at 16%, notebook at 13%, tablet at 15% and mobile applications at 9%.
The tablet segment rose this year by 5 percentage points to 15%, due to a new model launch by various customers combined with existing tablet product volume increase.
LG Display expects demand and volume of shipments of new smart device to increase in Q4. They told analysts to expect high single-digit percent rise in the shipment in Q4 and anticipate the overall panel price to show a stable trend.
LG executives told the financial community that in 2013 the demand is unlikely to improve much further than this year, as economic uncertainties persist. Smart devices are expected to grow by double-digits, but overall panel demand growth will be down-- around low to mid single digits.
The supply situation should improve in year 2013 with capacity loss due to industry fab conversion trends and new technology adaptation.
LG intends to differentiate specialty products and technology (naming IPS, FPR and White RGB OLED as examples) to maintain sales and relationships with their partners.
LG display also promises prudent inventory control and CapEx discipline, both contributing to improving industry supply.
With these actions, LG Display says it will continue its efforts to become a structurally different company than their peers.