18 LED industry / supply chain listed companies disclosed their 2021 annual reports

Recently, companies have successively disclosed their 2021 performance reports. As of now, 18 LED-related enterprises have announced their results for last year.

Chip end: Silan Microelectronics and Weilan Lithium Core both show growth

Silan Microelectronics achieved revenue of 7.2 billion yuan in 2021, a year-on-year increase of 68.07%; net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was 1.51 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 2145.25%. In 2021, Silan Microelectronics basically completed the chip manufacturing and packaging production capacity construction goals set at the beginning of the year. Among them, Silan Mingxin consolidated its market share in traditional LED color display chips while accelerating the R&D and customer expansion of flip-chip Mini LED chips for high-density (COB) color displays and intelligent zone backlighting for LCD screens.

Weilan Lithium Core achieved total revenue of 6.7 billion yuan in 2021, a year-on-year increase of 57.80%; net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was 670 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 141.09%. Among them, the overall revenue from LED business was 1.3 billion yuan, with a year-on-year growth of approximately 49.30%; the revenue share was 19.20%. Weilan Lithium Core continued to promote the transformation of products from the general lighting field to the backlight field. In 2021, the sales volume of backlight products increased by approximately 400% compared to 2020, and the overall revenue share reached about 20%.

Packaging end: MLS sets a new all-time high

In 2021, MLS achieved annual revenue of 18.615 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 7.10% compared to 2020; net cash flow reached 4.010 billion yuan, up 173.47% year-on-year; net profit attributable to the parent company reached 1.159 billion yuan, a significant year-on-year increase of 284.10% compared to 2020, setting a new record high in the 25-year history of MLS. Building on its LED lighting and packaging businesses, MLS embarked on a path of diversified business layout, focusing on Mini LED, horticultural lighting, air purification, UV LED, photovoltaics, and energy storage, achieving substantial progress in 2021.

In 2021, Sanan Optoelectronics' total revenue reached 2.371 billion yuan, a year-on-year (YoY) increase of 0.86% compared to 2020; net profit attributable to the parent company was 272 million yuan, a year-on-year (YoY) decrease of 10.93% compared to 2020. With the rapid development of automotive intelligence and the advancement of the national 5G+8K ultra-high-definition display strategy, the company's new product businesses such as automotive LED and Mini LED grew rapidly, providing strong support for the company's performance.

Device-side: Mini LED continues to show positive trends

AMEC's revenue in 2021 was approximately 3.108 billion yuan, an increase of about 835 million yuan compared to 2020, representing a Year-on-year (YoY) growth of 36.72%; net profit attributable to shareholders of AMEC in 2021 was 1.011 billion yuan, a Year-on-year (YoY) increase of 105.49%. All major products of AMEC maintained a strong growth trend. Benefiting from the development of the semiconductor equipment market and the company's competitive advantages, revenue from etching equipment in 2021 reached 2.004 billion yuan, a growth of approximately 55.44% compared to 2020; revenue from MOCVD equipment in 2021 was 503 million yuan, a growth of approximately 1.53% compared to 2020, but the gross margin of MOCVD equipment reached 33.77%, a significant increase from 18.65% in 2020.

Kingsemi achieved full-year revenue of 829 million yuan in 2021, a year-on-year increase of 151.95% compared to 2020. Net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was 77 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 58.41% compared to 2020. The main reason for Kingsemi's revenue growth is the continued improvement in the semiconductor industry outlook. Among them, revenue from photoresist coating and development equipment products increased by 114.40% compared to the same period last year, mainly due to the growth in revenue from coating/development machines; revenue from single-wafer wet process equipment products increased by 280.56% compared to the same period last year, mainly due to the growth in revenue from cleaning machines, stripping machines, and wet etching machines.

XinYiChang achieved full-year revenue of 1.197 billion yuan in 2021, a year-on-year (YoY) increase of 69.90%. The main reason for the revenue growth was that income from Mini LED die bonders, semiconductor die bonders, capacitor aging test equipment, and lithium battery equipment all showed significant growth compared to the same period in 2020.

Power supply: Horticultural lighting is developing rapidly

Inventronics achieved revenue of 1.416 billion yuan in 2021, a year-on-year increase of 34.48%. The horticultural lighting sector, which has developed rapidly in the past two years, has become one of the main application areas for Inventronics products. During the reporting period, Inventronics' horticultural lighting LED driver revenue was approximately 317 million yuan, up 137% year-on-year, accounting for 25.29% of total LED driver revenue.

Songsheng Shares achieved revenue of 1.1 billion yuan in 2021, a year-on-year (YoY) increase of 62.74% compared to 2020. In 2021, the overall market demand for the LED lighting industry grew rapidly, driving the company's performance growth. Among them, horticultural lighting LED driver power supply business was Songsheng Shares' main revenue source, accounting for 40.48% of total revenue; followed by industrial LED driver power supply and outdoor LED driver power supply, with shares of 32.11% and 22.68%, respectively.

Mao Shuo Power's revenue for 2021 was 1.626 billion yuan, a year-on-year (YoY) increase of 31.65%; net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was 66.5277 million yuan, a YoY increase of 5.82%. During the reporting period, Mao Shuo continued to leverage its product, market, and brand advantages in LED road lighting applications, driving rapid growth in the company's performance.

LED Lighting Applications: Commercial Lighting Shows Mixed Trends

Xingyu Shares achieved revenue of 7.909 billion yuan in 2021, a year-on-year increase of 8.01%. Among them, main business revenue was 7.089 billion yuan, an increase of 3.19% compared to the previous period. Xingyu Shares focuses on the R&D, design, manufacturing, and sales of automotive (mainly passenger car) lighting systems. It is one of China's leading manufacturers of complete automotive lighting assemblies and solution providers. Products mainly include automotive headlamps, rear combination lamps, fog lamps, daytime running lights, interior lights, ambient lights, etc.

Foshan Lighting achieved revenue of 4.773 billion yuan in 2021, a year-on-year increase of 27.44%; net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company reached 250 million yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 21.09%. In terms of revenue composition, LED products are currently the main source of Foshan Lighting's revenue. During the reporting period, LED product revenue was 2.988 billion yuan, up 5.72% year-on-year, accounting for 62.62% of total revenue; automotive lighting products contributed 899 million yuan in revenue during the reporting period, a year-on-year increase of 383.61%, with their share of revenue rising from 4.96% in 2020 to 18.84%, instantly becoming the second-largest revenue source for Foshan Lighting.

Tailong Shares achieved revenue of 4.948 billion yuan in 2021, a year-on-year (YoY) increase of 336.8%; net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was approximately 123 million yuan, a YoY increase of 362.43%. Among them, the LED industry segment achieved revenue of 559 million yuan, a YoY increase of 42.41%. As the company's traditional core business, commercial lighting will continue to be expanded by Tailong Shares in the future, developing related business within the commercial lighting supply chain and enhancing the company's profitability.

Shenghui Technology achieved revenue of 2.71 billion yuan in 2021, a year-on-year (YoY) decrease of 35.39%; net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was 209 million yuan, a YoY decrease of 63.82%. Among them, 'LED lighting equipment and installation' generated revenue of 501 million yuan, accounting for 18.48% of total revenue.

LED Display Applications: Efforts in Domestic and Overseas Markets

BOE's 2021 annual revenue reached 219.31 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 61.79%; net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was 25.831 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 412.96%, setting a new historical record. In terms of MLED business, we will build a product portfolio of Mini/Micro LED products centered on active driving and COG, with SMD/COB coordinated development; strengthen collaboration with upstream and downstream resources, continuously enrich the product structure, enhance product competitiveness, expand application markets, and accelerate business layout.

Autel Electronics achieved revenue of 966 million yuan in 2021, a year-on-year increase of 17.85%; net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was 33.9105 million yuan, achieving a turnaround from loss to profit on a year-on-year basis.

Skyworth Digital's 2021 revenue reached 10.847 billion yuan, a Year-on-year (YoY) increase of 27.49%. The professional display business segment of Skyworth Digital generated revenue of 2.841 billion yuan, a Year-on-year (YoY) increase of 11.09%, accounting for 26.20% of the company's total Revenue.

Absen achieved total operating revenue of 2.327 billion yuan in 2021, a year-on-year increase of 41.72%; net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was 28.5808 million yuan, turning from loss to profit compared to the previous year. With strategic investments in key overseas areas and expansion of (sales) channels, Absen's overseas Display signed orders reached 1.305 billion yuan in 2021, a 69.24% increase compared to 2020. In the domestic market, Absen has established a relatively complete channel management system, achieving 1.512 billion yuan in China Display signed orders in 2021, a 46.77% increase compared to 2020.

Mini LED still holds an important position

Among the business growth drivers of these enterprises, Mini LED remains the primary track. Among them, Silan Micro has accelerated R&D and customer expansion for Mini LED chips and has already achieved mass shipments.

MLS began positioning for Mini LED displays in 2019 and currently focuses on direct-view Mini LED. To address yield and display quality issues in the mass production of current Mini LED COB, the company has directed its R&D efforts toward brand-new Mini LED COB packaging materials, processes, and equipment. It has successfully developed a new Mini LED RGB display module manufacturing technology, including electrode technology for Mini LEDs, anisotropic conductive adhesive bonding technology, thermocompression reflow process technology, and related supporting equipment, accumulating multiple matching invention patents.

The rapid growth of new product businesses such as Jufei Optoelectronics' Mini LED has provided strong support for the company's performance. Regarding Mini LED products, Jufei Optoelectronics covers both Mini LED backlight products and Mini LED direct display products. Among them, the supply volume of Mini LED backlight products is currently large; meanwhile, market acceptance of Mini LED direct display products is also increasing. At the same time, the technical R&D reserves for Micro LED and the progress of collaborative development with key manufacturers are proceeding smoothly.

The main reason for Xinyichang's revenue growth is that the Mini LED die bonders showed significant growth compared to the same period in 2020. 2021 has been called the "first year of Mini LED commercialization," which not only created a favorable environment for the development of Mini LED technology, paving the way for its future market explosion, but also brought a large number of orders to midstream equipment manufacturers and added a touch of certainty to the industry's prosperity.

Horticultural lighting business is growing rapidly

With the improvement of LED luminous efficacy and continuous cost reduction, as well as domestic and local policy support for digital and modern agriculture, LED horticultural lighting solutions play a crucial role in addressing the impact of limited land resources and unstable climate on agriculture and harvest stability, with huge development potential. Recently, the United States officially passed the MORE Act plan, bringing plant lighting back into the spotlight.

In 2021, horticultural lighting was one of MLS's key strategic layouts. In 2021, MLS signed cooperation agreements with the Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Institute of Urban Agriculture of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences to deploy horticultural lighting projects in the alfalfa and forage fields. Additionally, in September, MLS's controlling subsidiary, MLS Photobiology, signed a 160 million RMB "Smart Plant Growth Chamber Equipment Procurement Contract" with Tori County Tianxing Animal Husbandry Development Co., Ltd. The plant growth chambers focus on forage cultivation, aiming to address issues such as livestock overgrazing, winter fresh forage supply, and import substitution for alfalfa.

Songsheng Shares holds a prominent first-mover advantage in the LED horticultural lighting sector. The company actively began developing LED driver / power supply products for horticultural lighting in 2018, launched VP series and other driver / power supply products specifically designed for LED horticultural lighting in 2019, and rapidly seized the market opportunities in LED horticultural lighting development in 2020, establishing Songsheng's market position in the field of dedicated LED driver / power supplies for horticultural lighting.

Inventronics has developed rapidly in the horticultural lighting sector over the past two years. During the reporting period, Inventronics' revenue from horticultural lighting LED drivers was approximately 317 million CNY, a year-on-year (YoY) increase of 137%, accounting for 25.29% of total LED driver power supply revenue. Inventronics stated that the company holds a first-mover advantage in the horticultural lighting field, with systematic patents and product R&D leading globally; related products have been applied in the market since 2013. For high-performance horticultural lighting products, the company has achieved superior efficiency and ease of installation, fully meeting market demands.

Summary: Since the industry看好 and began launching related products for Mini LED in 2017, Mini LED has started to enter the stage of large-scale commercialization. On one hand, it has quickly entered the large-screen display field; on the other hand, driven by Apple product integration and high-end TV demand, it showed significant volume growth in 2021.

At the same time, influenced by the legalization of industrial hemp in the United States, horticultural lighting has re-entered people's vision. Relevant institutions estimate that global demand for LED luminaire products in horticultural lighting will reach $7 billion by 2026, and supporting products for the horticultural lighting industry / supply chain, especially power supply products, are expected to see a major wave of benefits.

Such strong market demand will be an important reason for the continued growth of horticultural lighting and Mini LED. 2022 will also continue to be full of expectations.