DFI Sells Brainstorm Shares for NT$530 Million High Value-added Businesses will be the Focus of Future Deployment
The Board of Directors of DFI, the world leading brand in embedded motherboards and industrial computers (IPC), resolved today (8/1) to dispose of the 35.09% stake in its subsidiary, Brainstorm, a special application computer distributor in the United States. The stake was sold to MetaAge, a subsidiary of BenQ-Qisda Group for an estimated amount of NT$530 million. The sale will be completed in the fourth quarter of this year at the earliest. In the future, DFI will become more focused on strengthening its deployment in high value-added businesses such as healthcare, new energy applications, and rail transportation.
The three major product lines of Brainstorm include graphics processing units (GPU), workstations, and artificial intelligence (AI) servers. In 2021, DFI acquired a 35.09% stake in Brainstorm for US$17.97 million. The goal was to combine existing infrastructure with Brainstorm's channel resources to enter new markets and further expand the scope of business.
Michael Lee, Vice Chairman of DFI, stated that in the past few years, the graphics card industry has gone through many ups and downs. DFI's partnership with Brainstorm has minimized the impacts of these fluctuations. DFI has also seized the opportunity to develop new market opportunities in GPU and AI servers, successfully creating multiplier effects. Considering that the goals at different stages have been achieved and better results were yielded for the operations of both companies, this adjustment is made. The partnership will not change and existing projects will continue.
In addition, DFI also announced its financial report for the second quarter of this year. The quarterly consolidated revenue was NT$3.761 billion, representing a quarterly decrease of 2% and a year-on-year decrease of 3%. The net profit after tax was NT$98 million, representing a quarterly decrease of 22% and a year-on-year decrease of 15%. The earnings per share (EPS) was NT$0.85. Cumulative positive growth was maintained in the first half of the year. Consolidated revenue was NT$7.581 billion, showing a year-on-year decrease of 2%. Net profit after tax was NT$223 million, showing a year-on-year increase of 12%. Earnings per share (EPS) was NT$1.95. The gross profit margin was 21%, operating margin was 4.3%, and net profit margin was 2.9% in the first half of the year, which were superior to the previous year.
DFI stated that overall performance decreased slightly due to global inflation, higher interest rates in the United States, and weaker-than-expected recovery in China in the second quarter. However, through the active destocking over the past few quarters, DFI's inventory level has been lowered to a healthy level compared to the same period in the previous year. Customer inventory levels are also being lowered. With risks being gradually eliminated, overall operations will have the opportunity to return to normal.