By Yi Wei Wong


Shares of Nanofilm Technologies International fell sharply in early trade, as analysts warned that the company's earnings are likely to weaken in the first half.

The Singapore-listed nanotechnology company's shares fell as much as 7.7% to 1.44 Singapore dollars (US$1.07). They were last down 6.4% at S$1.46 at the midday break, taking week-to-date losses to 9.9%.

A poor outlook for consumer electronics could weigh on Nanofilm's earnings in the first half, CGS-CIMB analyst William Tng says in a note.

The analyst notes that manufacturer Foxconn, which is seen as a bellwether for the consumer-electronics sector, has said that its outlook for the second quarter remains dim amid a "seasonal off-peak period" for the sector. That could also trouble for Nanofilm's earnings.

"With Foxconn reporting a monthly year-on-year revenue decline and Nanofilm's own first-quarter business update, we see risk of the first half being loss-making for Nanofilm," the analyst adds.

CGS-CIMB lowers its 2023-2025 revenue estimates for Nanofilm by 16%-25%. It also downgrades the stock to reduce from hold and cuts the target price to S$1.13 from S$1.57, citing the worsening demand outlook amid global macroeconomic concerns.


Write to Yi Wei Wong at yiwei.wong@wsj.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

06-22-23 0023ET