UMC Earnings: Q2 Core and Non-Operating Income Surge, EPS Hits Record High of NT$3.39, First-Half Profit Nears Half of Paid-In Capital

UMC (2303-TW)(UMC-US) held its earnings conference today (29) and released its second-quarter financial report. Benefiting from a steady recovery in core operations and nearly NT$30.2 billion in non-operating investment and dividend income, the company's net profit after tax reached NT$42.26 billion, a record high, up 161.3% quarter-on-quarter and 316.2% year-on-year. Earnings per share (EPS) stood at NT$3.39, with cumulative first-half EPS reaching NT$4.68.

UMC's Q2 revenue was NT$68.73 billion, up 12.6% quarter-on-quarter and 17% year-on-year. Gross margin was 32.5%, up 3.3 percentage points quarter-on-quarter and 3.8 percentage points year-on-year. Operating margin was 21.8%, up 3.3 and 3.4 percentage points respectively. Net profit after tax was NT$42.26 billion, up 161.3% QoQ and 316.2% YoY, with EPS at NT$3.39.

For the first half of the year, UMC's revenue totaled NT$129.771 billion, up 11.3% year-on-year. Gross margin was 30.9% (up 3.2 points YoY), operating margin was 20.2% (up 2.5 points YoY), net profit after tax was NT$58.431 billion (up 250.3% YoY), and EPS was NT$4.68.

UMC CEO Robert Wang stated, 'Wafer shipments in Q2 increased by 10.6% compared to the previous quarter, primarily driven by strong demand from communications and consumer electronics, further pushing capacity utilization to 85%. Revenue from 22/28nm processes continued to set new records, with 22nm sales accounting for 17.5% of total revenue in Q2.'