News

Is Sharp in trouble again?

29 January 2015

Once again, the blogosphere is full of rumours about a possible takeover of Sharp.  Specifically, that Sharp Electronics might sell their imaging and air-conditioning divisions.  Potential buyers - it is rumoured - include Samsung Electronics.

The issue has come up again as Sharp shares fell to a two-year low following a low-profits warning shortly.  Last week, Sharp indicated profit targets would not be met, but a full earnings report is awaited for next Tuesday February 3.

Sharp USA's Marketing VP has drawn attention to optimistic figures for all of 2014 and particularly Q3 in the Industry Analysts newsletter.  Debt is down, and R&D spending is up.

Whether or not Samsung Electronics will be inclined to buy two or more divisions of Sharp Electronics may well depend on how well Christmas went for them.  Samsung are seeing unprecedented challenges from Chinese smartphone manufacturers.  Other consumer electronics markets are showing similar trends - and this has hit both Samsung and Sharp.