Epson reported ¥282.1 billion in first quarter revenue for fiscal year 2021, up 46% year on year from ¥193.2 billion in Covid-plagued Q1 2020. Business profit was ¥24.2 billion, up 455% year on year from ¥4.3 billion in Q1 2020.
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| Epson headquarters in Nagano, Japan |
The company said markets were recovering from the impact of Covid-19 but supply chain disruption and component shortages were expected to continue.
“Results exceeded internal plans for the first quarter,” Epson said. “Demand was stronger than expected in all segments, while sales prices saw an increase due to supply constraints.
“Demand for home printing continues to be strong, although it has settled down relative to last year’s extremely high demand. But more concerningly, supply chain issues look set to continue, despite our earlier expectations that the situation would normalize in the second half. We also forecast difficulties in component procurement, so we expect supply shortages to continue. Profit will be impacted by higher logistics and component costs. Against that backdrop, we’re doing well in growth sectors such as office shared and commercial & industrial IJP."
Commercial & industrial printing showed significant growth, with revenue up 72.7% to ¥55.1 billion.
Epson said key factors in the ongoing rise in commercial and industrial printing sales were “the comeback from the pandemic and the launch of new products. We have received especially positive feedback on products for textiles, signage and labels. External sales of printheads have also increased, especially in China, and we expect that category to contribute to profit growth going forward.
“In commercial & industrial IJP, we benefitted from a market recovery from the effects of the pandemic. Sales of finished products grew steadily thanks to a stronger lineup following the launch of new products, especially in growth businesses such as corporate, signage, textiles, and labels.
“Printhead sales also grew sharply, reflecting growth in the Chinese market and increased adoption of Epson printheads.
“In small printers, revenue rose steadily year on year. This growth was driven by renewed investment from retailers and restaurant businesses after the resumption of economic activities.
Epson has upgraded its full-year financial outlook for FY2021.
“We forecast ¥1,150 billion in revenue, ¥75 billion in business profit, and ¥48 billion in profit for the period.
“Demand is strong for both Office & Home Printing and Commercial & Industrial Printing, but we will downgrade Office & Home Printing profit as we expect cost increase from higher logistics and procurement costs.
“In Office & Home Printing, we expect that demand for home printing will continue and markets will recover for IJPs, and therefore will upgrade our hardware quantity guidance to 19 million units. For high-capacity ink tank printers, we forecast sales of 13.4 million units, a 3 million unit increase year on year, with sales expanding both in developed markets and emerging economies. We also expect that our supply capacity will remain limited and that this will keep sales prices high. For office shared IJPs, we will continue to focus on replacing laser printers.
“For Commercial & Industrial Printing, we expect strong sales buoyed by the market recovery as well as expansion in growth businesses. Finished products should benefit from the enhanced lineup, while printhead sales will continue to grow, particularly in China. In the small printers category, we similarly expect recovery-driven sales growth in Europe and North America.”
More detail here.
