- Company Announces Second Half Cash Dividend of 0.09 Per Share -

MACAO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Deswell Industries, Inc. (Nasdaq: DSWL) today announced its unaudited financial results for the second half of the fiscal year ended March 31, 2020.

Net sales for the six months ended March 31, 2020 were $27.7 million, a decrease of 13.0% compared to net sales of $31.8 million for the six months ended March 31, 2019. Net sales decreased by 29.5% to $10.7 million in the plastic segment and increased by 2.0% to $17.0 million in the Company’s electronic segment.

Total gross margin increased to 19.2% during the six months ended March 31, 2020, as compared to 17.2% in the same period last year. Gross profit margin in the plastic segment increased to 23.3% of net sales for the second half of fiscal 2020, as compared to 20.9% of net sales for the corresponding period of last fiscal year. The increase in gross profit margin in the plastic segment was mainly due to decrease in raw materials cost, offsetting the increases in labor cost, as well as in factory overhead, as a percentage of sales. Gross profit margin for the electronic segment for the six months ended March 31, 2020 increased from 13.9% in second half of fiscal 2019 to 16.7% in the second half of fiscal 2020. The increase was mainly due to the reduction in labor cost as a result of the implementation of cost control measures.

Operating income for the second half of fiscal 2020 remained approximately the same as the same period of fiscal 2019 at $0.3 million.

The Company reported net loss of $2.6 million for the six months ended March 31, 2020, as compared to net income of $1.5 million for the six months ended March 31, 2019. Non-operating expense for the six months ended March 31, 2020 was $2.6 million, as compared to non-operating income of $1.4 million in the year-ago six months. Non-operating expense during the six months ended March 31, 2020 was primarily comprised of $3,927,000 from a decrease in the fair value of marketable securities, offsetting rental income of $761,000, dividend income of $485,000 from securities investment, and interest income of $126,000. Deswell reported basic and diluted loss per share of $0.16 for the second half of fiscal 2020 (based on 15,915,000 and 15,966,000 weighted average shares outstanding, respectively), as compared to basic and diluted income share of $0.10 (based on 15,885,000 and 15,969,000 weighted average shares outstanding), for the six months ended March 31, 2019.

Net sales for the year ended March 31, 2020 were $65.4 million, a decrease of 1.8% compared to net sales of $66.6 million for fiscal 2019. Operating income for the year ended March 31, 2020 increased to $1.4 million, as compared to operating income of $0.5 million for fiscal 2019. The Company reported net loss of $1.3 million in fiscal 2020, as compared to net income of $4.3 million for the year ended March 31, 2019. The decrease in net income was mainly attributed to the non-operating expense of $2.4 million in fiscal 2020, as compared to the non-operating income of $3.9 million in fiscal 2019. Deswell reported basic and diluted net loss per share of $0.08 for fiscal 2020, (based on 15,914,000 and 16,020,000 weighted average share outstanding, respectively), as compared to basic and diluted income per share of $0.27 (based on 15,855,000 and 16,059,000 weighted average shares outstanding), for the prior fiscal year.

The Company's financial position remained strong, with $22.5 million in cash and cash equivalents and working capital totaled $51.1 million as of March 31, 2020. Furthermore, the Company has no long-term or short-term borrowings as of March 31, 2020.

Mr. Edward So, Chief Executive Officer, commented, “We are pleased with our fiscal 2020 results which included a strong increase in operating income despite challenges related to Covid-19 and trade conflicts. Our first priority has been the safety of our employees and to that end we delayed the reopening of our facilities following the Chinese New Year holiday, which resulted in lost production days. Supply chain interruptions also presented some headwinds but we managed through those challenges and have been able to support our customers.

“While we continue to see demand negatively impacted by the international economic environment, we continue to nurture new customer relationships which we are optimistic can develop into larger commitments. One of the many strengths of our company is our strong balance sheet which enables us to weather challenging periods and stay focused on the long term performance of the business. Finally, we brought expenses down in fiscal 2020 and will continue to proactively manage costs to maximize operating profitability for our shareholders.”

Second Half Dividend

The Company also announces that its board of directors today declared a cash dividend of $0.09 per share for the second half of the fiscal year ended March 31, 2020. The dividend will be payable on July 10, 2020 to shareholders of record as of June 25, 2020.

Dividends to be declared in the future will depend upon the Company’s future growth and earnings, of which there can be no assurance, and the Company’s cash flow needs for future development.

About Deswell

Deswell manufactures injection-molded plastic parts and components, electronic products and subassemblies, and metallic molds and accessory parts for original equipment manufacturers (“OEMs”) and contract manufacturers at its factories in the People’s Republic of China. The Company produces a wide variety of plastic parts and components used in the manufacture of consumer and industrial products; printed circuit board assemblies using surface mount (“SMT”) and finished products such as telephones, telephone answering machines, sophisticated studio-quality audio equipment and computer peripherals.

To learn more about Deswell Industries, Inc., please visit the Company’s website at www.deswell.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements in this press release that are "forward-looking statements" are based on current expectations and assumptions that are subject to risks and uncertainties. For example, our statements regarding our expected growth in sales from the electronic division in the coming year and our efforts to reduce overhead costs in our plastic division are forward-looking statements. Actual results could differ materially because of the following factors, among others, which may cause revenues and income to fall short of anticipated levels or our overhead expenses to increase: our dependence on a few major customers; vigorous competition forcing product price reductions or discounts; the timing and amount of significant orders from our relatively few significant customers; continuing increases in resin prices that cannot be passed on to customers; unexpected production delays; obsolete inventory or product returns; losses resulting from fraudulent activity of our customers or employees; labor shortages that increase labor and costs; changes in the mix of product products we manufacture and sell; adverse currency fluctuations in the Renminbi and Hong Kong dollar when translated to US dollars; potential new accounting pronouncements; and the effects of travel restrictions and quarantines associated with major health problems, such as the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, on general economic activity.

For further information regarding risks and uncertainties associated with the Company’s business, please refer to the “Risk Factors” section of Company’s Annual Report on Form 20-F, copies of which may be obtained from the Website maintained by the Securities and Exchange Commission at http://www.sec.gov.

All information in this release is made as of the date of this press release. Deswell undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statement to conform the statement to actual results or changes in Deswell’s expectations.

Contacts

Investor Relations Contact:
John Nesbett/Jennifer Belodeau

IMS Investor Relations

203.972.9200