Sharp is back on track as it hikes forecasts and plots fundraising
JAPANESE electronics group Sharp said yesterday it will raise more than £1bn in share sales, marking a step forward in the TV and display maker’s turnaround.
The company also raised its business forecasts as a reviving stock market aided its revival.
The supplier of panels for Apple’s smartphones is clawing its way back to health after receiving a ¥360bn (£2.28bn) rescue from creditor banks last year. It has since received investments from Samsung and Qualcomm.
Osaka-based Sharp said it will sell up to ¥148.9bn worth of shares to the public and raise ¥17.5bn through third-party placements to partner firms Lixil, Makita and Denso. One source said the fund-raising will tide the company over through the end of the business year in March.
The company last year posted a ¥545bn net loss, which pushed its capital below six per cent of equity, well short of the 20 per cent ratio widely seen as a financial-stability threshold for manufacturers.
Sharp raised its business forecasts for the half year through to the end of September, doubling its operating-profit forecast to ¥30bn. It halved its net-loss projection to ¥10bn.
The mobile-phone business has underperformed, but such areas as smartphones, tablet devices and solar batteries have beaten expectations, Sharp said in a statement yesterday.