Olympus posts an annual loss
OLYMPUS plunged to a £379m net loss yesterday as operating profits fell
7.5 per cent, and reported lower than expected capital levels that leave the door open for a possible fund-raising drive.
The embattled camera company said operating profit dropped to ¥ 35.5bn (£274.8m) in the year to the end of March.
It posted a ¥ 49bn annual net loss, deeper than a consensus estimate of a ¥ 28.6bn loss.
The firm did not release a forecast for the year to March 2013, as it is in the process of compiling a business strategy plan that may be released as early as this month.
Olympus’ shareholders’ equity ticked up to 4.6 per cent of its total assets as of the end of March from 4.4 per cent as of December, the firm said yesterday. That was still below the 20 per cent level which is widely regarded as indicative of financial stability for a company.
The group is now under new management, led by former engineer Hiroyuki Sasa, after shareholders approved a new board in April to restore Olympus’ reputation following last year’s £1bn accounting scandal.