Canon’s global headquarters in Ota, Tokyo
The OEM reported a 5.1 percent increase in the quarter, though profits decreased.
The results for 2Q2015 saw Canon report “strong” sales and demand for MFPs, and laser printers “maintained steady growth, mainly for colour models”, though inkjet printer demand “decreased from the previous year due to sluggish market conditions in southeast Asian countries”. Net sales grew by 5.1 percent to ¥974.4 billion ($7.8 billion/€7.1 billion), a two percent increase year-over-year, though operating profit fell by 5.3 percent to ¥104.7 billion ($848 million/€765 million) in the quarter, and by 11.5 percent for the half-year to ¥170.9 billion ($1.3 billion/€1.2 billion).
On a segment basis, the Office Business Unit – containing laser printers and MFPs – saw “healthy demand” for office MFPs and “the colour A4 (letter and legal-sized) imageRUNNER ADVANCE C350/C250” printers alongside the colour imagePRESS C800 and C700 production devices and imageRUNNER ADVANCE C3300 SOHO A3 printers. Laser printers, “despite steadily growing demand for colour models”, saw total sales volume decrease “due to weak sales of monochrome models”.
As a consequence, sales for the unit came to ¥537 billion ($4.3 billion/€3.9 billion), a year-on-year growth of 2.8 percent, though operating profit fell 9.9 percent to ¥79.4 billion ($643 million/€580 million) due to “the increase in R&D and other expenses”. For the first half of the year, sales for the unit came to ¥1,066.1 billion ($8.6 billion/€7.8 billion), a growth on last year by 3.3 percent, while operating profit fell 5.5 percent to ¥151.1 billion ($1.2 billion/€1.1 billion).
In inkjet printers, sales volume in developed countries “increased from the same period of the previous year thanks to sales promotions” for products featuring “enhanced mobile-device compatibility” and the OEM’s MAXIFY business inkjet range. However, total sales volume fell “due to economic stagnation in southeast Asian countries”, meaning that sales for the unit grew “slightly” to ¥332.5 billion ($2.6 billion/€2.4 billion), as operating profit fell 0.9 percent to ¥50.5 billion ($409 million/€369 million).
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For the first half of the 2015 financial year, sales for the unit inkjet printers is part of DELETE fell to ¥595.2 billion ($4.8 billion/€4.3 billion), a decline of 4.8 percent, while operating profit fell 14.4 percent to ¥79.6 billion ($645 million/€582 million). Cash flow for the OEM for the first half of the year reached ¥224.7 billion ($1.8 billion/€1.6 billion), a decline of ¥69.8 billion ($565 million/€510 million) compared to the same period last year, which Canon attributed to a “decrease in profit along with an increase in inventory”.
Looking ahead, the OEM predicts DELETE MFP demand “is projected to expand moderately, mainly for colour models”, while colour laser MFP demand “is also expected to continue to realise growth”. Forecasts for inkjet printers meanwhile indicate a “year-on-year decline in sales due to weak market conditions in southeast Asian countries”. It is expected that net sales for the year will grow 5.4 percent to ¥3,930 billion ($31 billion/€28 billion), while operating profit increases 4.5 percent to ¥380 billion ($3 billion/€2.7 billion).