Tag Archives: Company Earnings

Mark Zuckerberg’s bet on the metaverse is off to an expensive start

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Mark Zuckerberg’s metaverse pivot is off to slow start. The company now known as Meta lost just over $10 billion on its Reality Labs division in 2021, according to its fourth-quarter earnings report.

“This fully realized vision is still a ways off,” Zuckerberg said of Meta’s metaverse investments. “And although the direction is clear, our path ahead is not yet perfectly defined.” Zuckerberg said the company planned to launch a new "high-end" VR headset as well as a mobile version of its Horizon VR experience.

It’s the first time the company has shared the financial performance of the AR and VR division that’s central to its metaverse ambitions (Facebook acquired Oculus in 2014). That the metaverse isn’t yet turning a profit isn’t a surprise. The company said last quarter that its AR and VR investments would result in a $10 billion loss. But combined with flat user growth and continued hits to its advertising business, the company’s fourth-quarter results sent Meta's stock into a nosedive Wednesday.

Facebook DAUs dipped slightly.
Meta

Among the concerns: Facebook’s daily active users (DAUs) declined from 1.93 billion last quarter to 1.92 billion, a change that Zuckerberg attributed in part to increased competition from TikTok. “We're in the middle of a transition on our own services towards short form video like Reels,” Zuckerberg said. “Reels is now our fastest growing content format by far.” But he added that Reels doesn’t yet monetize as well as Stories or feeds. The Facebook founder said last quarter that attracting "young adults" between the ages of 18 and 29 would be one of its top priorities, as Facebook reorients its platform around short form video to better compete with TikTok. But while Reels is showing strong growth, Facebook's overall growth suggests the feature isn't yet attracting the new users Zuckerberg wants to reach. 

Facebook's revenue growth is also expected to slow in the coming months. Though its ad business is still incredibly profitable — it made $32.6 billion in the last quarter — the company warned that Apple’s iOS 14 privacy changes will have a significant impact in the next quarter. “The accuracy of our ads targeting decreased which increased the cost of driving outcomes,” COO Sheryl Sandberg said on the call. Zuckerberg said improving the company’s ads despite Apple’s changes was one of Facebook’s top priorities, and that it was “rebuilding a lot of our ads infrastructure.”

Until then, though, Apple's ad targeting changes could be as money-sucking as its metaverse investments. "We believe the impact of iOS overall as a headwind on our business in 2022 is on the order of $10 billion," CFO Dave Wehner said. "So it's a pretty significant headwind for our business."

Sony drops PlayStation 5 sales forecast again due to chip shortage

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Sony is still struggling to make enough PlayStation 5 consoles to keep up with demand. During its key holiday fiscal quarter, it shipped 3.9 million units for a total of 17.3 million since launch, the company said in its earnings report. That's considerably behind the 20.2 million units the PS4 had managed at the same point in its life cycle.

Because of that, Sony reported 813.3 billion yen ($7.09 billion) in revenue for its gaming division, down from 883.2 billion yen ($7.703 billion) over the same quarter last year. However, operating profit rose 12.1 percent to $810 million, because Sony actually loses money on each PS5 console sold. 

Sony CFO Hiroki Totoki said in an analyst webcast that people want to buy PS5 consoles, but partners can't supply components due to the ongoing chip shortage. Sony expects that situation to continue during the coming year, meaning PS5s may not be any easier to find, particularly in the first half of 2022. 

Sony lowered its forecast for PS5 shipments for the fiscal year to 11.5 million units, down from 14.8 million. As such, it dropped its full year revenue estimate for its Game & Network Services (G&NS) division by 170 million yen ($1.48 billion). At the same time, it expects 6 percent more profit despite lower game sales, thanks to the aforementioned unprofitable consoles.

Sony's gaming division is its biggest money maker, accounting for around a quarter of its overall revenue and profits this quarter. However, its imaging division also fared well in fiscal Q3, with a 22 percent increase in revenue year-over-year, thanks to sales of its premium smartphone image sensors. Its movie division, meanwhile, saw a large jump in revenue to $4.02 billion due in large part to the success of Spider-Man: No Way Home. 

Update February 3, 2021 3:18 AM ET: The post originally said that Sony sold 3.3 million PS5s this quarter, but the correct figure is 3.9 million. It has been updated with the correct information. 

Apple brought in a record-breaking $123.9 billion in revenue, despite supply constraints

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It's been a great quarter for Apple. The company just dropped its earnings report for Q1, 2022 (which for Apple ended December 25, 2021), and it broke revenue records across the board. It also reported a net income of $34.63 billion, with gross margins increasing to approximately 43.8 percent.

Not only did quarterly revenue hit an all-time high of $123.9 billion, Apple also brought in more money selling iPhones, Macs and wearables than ever before. This time last year, the company reported a revenue of $111 billion, which itself was a new record at the time. Last quarter, too, it made all kinds of money selling Macs, even without the release of new Macbooks.

Apple's revenue from iPhones ($71.6 billion) this year, despite global supply constraints, is a notable jump from last year ($65.6 billion). Driven by the transition to its own M1 silicon chips, Mac revenues were up more than $2 billion compared to the year prior, hitting a record $10.9 billion. Chief financial officer Luca Maestri said on the company's earnings call that the last six quarters were "the best six quarters ever for Mac," and that M1-powered devices made up the vast majority of sales thanks to a "record number of upgraders."

"Wearables, Home and Accessories" — which includes Apple Watch, AirPods and HomePods — added another record-breaking $14.7 billion to the revenue sheet. Apple's services also contributed to its overall revenue, with products like TV+ and Fitness+ raking in a total of $19.5 billion — an increase of 24 percent from last year. Maestri noted that paid subscriptions continue to increase, with recent developments in Fitness+, Arcade and Apple Music contributing to the growth.

But not all products broke records this year. Net sales of iPads brought in $7.2 billion in Q1 2021, which is a 14 percent decrease year-over-year "due to very significant supply constraints," Maestri said. 

Investors will be happy to know that Apple's board of directors have declared "a cash dividend of 22 cents per share of common stock, payable on February 10th 2022." With supply chain issues and inflationary pressures impacting every business, Apple's results this quarter are surprisingly strong. CEO Tim Cook said in the Q&A section of the earnings call that the company will "have less constraints than we had in the December quarter," which could mean its streak of wins might not be over.

Apple brought in a record-breaking $123.9 billion in revenue, despite supply constraints

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It's been a great quarter for Apple. The company just dropped its earnings report for Q1, 2022 (which for Apple ended December 25, 2021), and it broke revenue records across the board. It also reported a net income of $34.63 billion, with gross margins increasing to approximately 43.8 percent.

Not only did quarterly revenue hit an all-time high of $123.9 billion, Apple also brought in more money selling iPhones, Macs and wearables than ever before. This time last year, the company reported a revenue of $111 billion, which itself was a new record at the time. Last quarter, too, it made all kinds of money selling Macs, even without the release of new Macbooks.

Apple's revenue from iPhones ($71.6 billion) this year, despite global supply constraints, is a notable jump from last year ($65.6 billion). Driven by the transition to its own M1 silicon chips, Mac revenues were up more than $2 billion compared to the year prior, hitting a record $10.9 billion. Chief financial officer Luca Maestri said on the company's earnings call that the last six quarters were "the best six quarters ever for Mac," and that M1-powered devices made up the vast majority of sales thanks to a "record number of upgraders."

"Wearables, Home and Accessories" — which includes Apple Watch, AirPods and HomePods — added another record-breaking $14.7 billion to the revenue sheet. Apple's services also contributed to its overall revenue, with products like TV+ and Fitness+ raking in a total of $19.5 billion — an increase of 24 percent from last year. Maestri noted that paid subscriptions continue to increase, with recent developments in Fitness+, Arcade and Apple Music contributing to the growth.

But not all products broke records this year. Net sales of iPads brought in $7.2 billion in Q1 2021, which is a 14 percent decrease year-over-year "due to very significant supply constraints," Maestri said. 

Investors will be happy to know that Apple's board of directors have declared "a cash dividend of 22 cents per share of common stock, payable on February 10th 2022." With supply chain issues and inflationary pressures impacting every business, Apple's results this quarter are surprisingly strong. CEO Tim Cook said in the Q&A section of the earnings call that the company will "have less constraints than we had in the December quarter," which could mean its streak of wins might not be over.

Samsung posts record revenue but reveals profit decline for Q4 2021

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Samsung's consolidated revenue for the fourth quarter of 2021 reached 76.57 trillion Korean won (US$63.7 billion), the tech giant has revealed in its latest earnings report. That's a quarterly record high for the company, which says that its revenue growth for the period was driven mainly by the expanded sales of its smartphones, TVs and home appliances. 

Its operating profit of KRW 13.87 trillion (US$11.5 billion) in the quarter ending December 31st, 2021 was lower than the previous quarter's, however, due to the bonuses that it doled out to employees for the season. The company has also reported a new historic revenue high of KRW 279.6 trillion (U$232.5 billion) for all of 2021, along with KRW 51.63 trillion (US$42.9 billion) in operating profits. 

Samsung's memory business, which is typically its biggest moneymaker, has experienced a decline in revenue from the previous quarter due to the global supply chain crisis and a slight drop in prices. Further, while demand for memory products remained strong, the company says it didn't push for sales as aggressively as it usually does after considering its inventory levels and the market outlook. The memory division posted a consolidated revenue of KRW 26.01 trillion (US$21.6 billion) and an operating profit of KRW 8.84 trillion (US$7.35 billion) for the fourth quarter of 2021. In the third quarter, it posted KRW 26.41 trillion (US$21.96 billion) in consolidated revenue and KRW 10.06 trillion (US$8.36 billion) in operating profit. 

Samsung's combined mobile and consumer electronics business, now called Mobile eXperience or MX, has posted KRW 28.95 trillion (US$24 billion) in consolidated revenue and KRW 2.66 trillion (US$2.2 billion) in operating profit. The slight increase in revenue was mainly due to the strong sales of its premium smartphones, namely its foldables and its Galaxy S series devices, as well as its PCs, tablets and wearables during the holiday season. Like in the previous quarter, though, the division's profitability was impacted by Samsung's marketing efforts for its foldables and for the launch of its upcoming models this year. 

Meanwhile, the company's mobile panel business saw an increase in earnings due to solid demand for new smartphones. Losses became larger for Samsung's large panel business, though, due to a decline in pricing for LCDs and the initial costs related to its Quantum Dot displays. Samsung also saw strong sales for its premium and lifestyle TVs, but its visual display business recorded a lower operating profit quarter-on-quarter because of rising material and logistics costs.

For 2022, Samsung expects growth in its memory business from higher server demand and in its display panel business from new smartphone releases. However, the company made it clear in its report that it also expects COVID-related supply issues and other problems to persist and affect its operations. Despite those constraints, it believes its MX business will still deliver revenue and profit growth led by its new flagships and by higher sales of its mass market 5G smartphones. Samsung has an Unpacked event scheduled on February 9th, where it will unveil the next S-series flagship to succeed the Galaxy S21 lineup.

Samsung posts record revenue but reveals profit decline for Q4 2021

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Samsung's consolidated revenue for the fourth quarter of 2021 reached 76.57 trillion Korean won (US$63.7 billion), the tech giant has revealed in its latest earnings report. That's a quarterly record high for the company, which says that its revenue growth for the period was driven mainly by the expanded sales of its smartphones, TVs and home appliances. 

Its operating profit of KRW 13.87 trillion (US$11.5 billion) in the quarter ending December 31st, 2021 was lower than the previous quarter's, however, due to the bonuses that it doled out to employees for the season. The company has also reported a new historic revenue high of KRW 279.6 trillion (U$232.5 billion) for all of 2021, along with KRW 51.63 trillion (US$42.9 billion) in operating profits. 

Samsung's memory business, which is typically its biggest moneymaker, has experienced a decline in revenue from the previous quarter due to the global supply chain crisis and a slight drop in prices. Further, while demand for memory products remained strong, the company says it didn't push for sales as aggressively as it usually does after considering its inventory levels and the market outlook. The memory division posted a consolidated revenue of KRW 26.01 trillion (US$21.6 billion) and an operating profit of KRW 8.84 trillion (US$7.35 billion) for the fourth quarter of 2021. In the third quarter, it posted KRW 26.41 trillion (US$21.96 billion) in consolidated revenue and KRW 10.06 trillion (US$8.36 billion) in operating profit. 

Samsung's combined mobile and consumer electronics business, now called Mobile eXperience or MX, has posted KRW 28.95 trillion (US$24 billion) in consolidated revenue and KRW 2.66 trillion (US$2.2 billion) in operating profit. The slight increase in revenue was mainly due to the strong sales of its premium smartphones, namely its foldables and its Galaxy S series devices, as well as its PCs, tablets and wearables during the holiday season. Like in the previous quarter, though, the division's profitability was impacted by Samsung's marketing efforts for its foldables and for the launch of its upcoming models this year. 

Meanwhile, the company's mobile panel business saw an increase in earnings due to solid demand for new smartphones. Losses became larger for Samsung's large panel business, though, due to a decline in pricing for LCDs and the initial costs related to its Quantum Dot displays. Samsung also saw strong sales for its premium and lifestyle TVs, but its visual display business recorded a lower operating profit quarter-on-quarter because of rising material and logistics costs.

For 2022, Samsung expects growth in its memory business from higher server demand and in its display panel business from new smartphone releases. However, the company made it clear in its report that it also expects COVID-related supply issues and other problems to persist and affect its operations. Despite those constraints, it believes its MX business will still deliver revenue and profit growth led by its new flagships and by higher sales of its mass market 5G smartphones. Samsung has an Unpacked event scheduled on February 9th, where it will unveil the next S-series flagship to succeed the Galaxy S21 lineup.

Sony has sold 13.4 million PS5s

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Sony's PlayStation 5 sales remain relatively steady and strong, despite widespread supply shortages, with 3.3 million units sold in fiscal Q2 compared to 2.2 million last quarter. That brought total sales up to 13.4 million units, Sony announced. Game sales were also up significantly at 76.4 million units compared to 63.6 million in the previous quarter, due in large part to third-party sales.

All told, this amounted to a healthy 27 percent boost in gaming revenue to 645.4 billion yen ($5.68 billion). However, operating income of 82.7 billion yen ($728 million) was down compared to last quarter by 3.4 billion yen ($29 million). Sony's fiscal year ends on March 31, 2022.

So how can profit be lower when sales and revenue are up? While Sony did sell more games last quarter, first-party titles dropped very significantly, from 10.5 million last quarter to 7.6 million in Q2. That was offset in numbers by third-party games, but those don't tend to be as profitable. Both Microsoft and Sony have acquired gaming studios to boost their Xbox/PS first-party titles, but Microsoft has been more prolific in that regard. 

And while PS5 sales were up, PS4 units dropped considerably, down to just 200,000 from a half a million the quarter before. Other factors that Sony mentioned are a "loss resulting from strategic price points for PS5 hardware that were set lower than manufacturing costs." That means that Sony may have sold the PS5 with minimal or negative profits this quarter as it attempted to navigate around chip shortages. However, in August, the company said it was no longer selling the PS5 at a loss. 

Despite the drop in quarterly income, Sony's gaming division appears to be on pretty solid footing. In its August earnings call, Sony CFO Hiroki Totoki told investors that its PS5 sales target is set higher than the 14.8 million unit sales achieved by the PlayStation 4 in its first year. Based on today's figures, PS5 sales are closely tracking that trajectory.

The company also said at the time that it had secured enough components for 22.6 million units sold by March 2022. That would be enough to meet its sales projections, but if sales really explode during the holidays, it may not have a lot of margin for error — meaning shortages could continue through next year. 

Samsung posts record-high revenue thanks to its chip and mobile businesses

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The third quarter of 2021 was a record breaker for Samsung, which posted a revenue of 73.98 trillion Korean won or US$63.1 billion. That's 10 percent higher from the same period last year. It also reported an operating profit of 15.82 trillion Korean won or U$13.5 billion, which is 26 percent higher than the previous quarter's. 

Despite the pandemic, the tech giant's semiconductor business posted 26.4 trillion won or US$22.6 billion in revenue, thanks to a strong demand for computers due to companies implementing work-from-home arrangements. Its DRAM sales, mainly for servers, continue to grow and is the leading factor for the division's stellar performance. Samsung says it was able to do business as usual despite the global shortage in chip components "by flexibly operating its product mix."

In addition to its chip business, Samsung's mobile division also contributed greatly to its record-breaking third quarter. It saw an improvement from the previous quarter, with its 28.42 trillion won or U$24.2 billion in revenue, thanks to strong sales of its mass-market lineup and its flagship models. The latter includes its new foldable devices, the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3, though the company admitted that the bigger marketing investments for its foldables affected the division's total profits. 

It's also thanks to the high demand for its phones that Samsung's display business was able to post 8.86 trillion won or US$7.5 billion in revenue. Display earnings were up from the previous quarter primarily due to the higher demand for small to medium OLED panels despite a sluggish demand for bigger panels.

Samsung remains optimistic for the fourth quarter, as well as for next year, but it didn't provide specific guidance for its chip business due to the ongoing component supply issue affecting various industries. It expects continued high demand for PCs and servers, nonetheless. For the fourth quarter specifically, it's expecting even higher earnings "due to expanded supply of SoCs and related products for launches of new 5G smartphones in 2022."

DJI’s Ronin 4D cinema camera has a built-in gimbal and LiDAR focus system

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DJI has revealed the Ronin 4D, a cinema camera system with a built-in 4-axis gimbal, 8K resolution and LiDAR rangefinder that promises "sharper, faster and more reliable focusing." With a price starting at $7,199, it's aimed at professionals, but shows DJI's technological prowess both with gimbals and camera technology. 

The "Zenmuse X9" camera is designed exclusively for the Ronin 4D and should give dedicated camera manufacturers pause. It's a full-frame interchangeable model that can use either DJI's DL or Leica M lenses (along with other mirrorless lenses via adapters) and comes with no less than nine built-in neutral-density (ND) filters for controlling exposure.

DJI's Ronin 4D cinema camera has a built-in gimbal and LiDAR focus system
DJI

It's available either in a 6K model that can handle 6K at 60fps and 4K at 120fps, or an 8K 75 fps version. It can capture files in RAW, ProRes or H.264, allowing maximum flexibility in production. DJI claims 14 stops of dynamic range, and it should be good in low-light thanks to the dual-native 800/5000 ISO. 

The gimbal itself is one of the first to offer Z-axis stabilization, DJI said. The aim is to reduce vertical jarring when a camera operator walks or runs, a trick that usually requires considerable skill. Helping in that regard is the Ronin 4D's relatively small size and 4.67 kg (10.3 pounds) heft, excluding the lens and storage card. It uses data from downward time of flight (ToF) sensors, forward and downward dual-visual sensors, a built-in IMU and a barometer. It also comes with DJI's ActiveTrack Pro (similar to that found on its consumer gimbals and drones), which uses AI to power framing and tracking. 

DJI's Ronin 4D cinema camera has a built-in gimbal and LiDAR focus system
tomgo.tang/DJI

As for the LiDAR focusing system, it offers "43,200 ranging points reaching as far as 10 meters, locating subjects quickly and accurately, even in low-light environments," DJI said in a press release. It didn't mention any other autofocus technology used by the camera, though it "supports human face/body recognition and framing of any subject." It also noted that the system "measures the distance to the subject without relying on surface textures or hunting for edges," implying it doesn't employ contrast-detect AF. 

The system supports full autofocus, manual focus and "Automated Manual Focus" (AMF) that allows camera operators to "pull focus with extreme precision." The general idea with AMF is that the autofocus handles most AF chores, but allows the operate to intervene manually at any point. 

DJI's Ronin 4D cinema camera has a built-in gimbal and LiDAR focus system
DJI

Other features including a long range (20,000 feet) video transmitter that outputs a 1080/60p feed to remote monitors, three storage methods (USB SSD, CFexpress Type-B and DJI's proprietary PROSSD 1TB), built-in microphones along with 3.5mm mic ports and XLR ports via an expansion plate, and a battery with up to 2.5 hours of shooting time. 

The Ronin 4D with a 6K camera costs $7,199, while the 8K model is $11,499. Both come with the gimbal, camera, LiDAR range finder, a monitor, hand grips, top handle, a carrying case and a battery. That's a lot, of course, but less than some cinema camera systems by themselves — and DJI's Ronin 2 cinema stabilizer runs $8,000-plus without any camera at all. 

DJI’s Ronin 4D cinema camera has a built-in gimbal and LiDAR focus system

Posted on by

DJI has revealed the Ronin 4D, a cinema camera system with a built-in 4-axis gimbal, 8K resolution and LiDAR rangefinder that promises "sharper, faster and more reliable focusing." With a price starting at $7,199, it's aimed at professionals, but shows DJI's technological prowess both with gimbals and camera technology. 

The "Zenmuse X9" camera is designed exclusively for the Ronin 4D and should give dedicated camera manufacturers pause. It's a full-frame interchangeable model that can use either DJI's DL or Leica M lenses (along with other mirrorless lenses via adapters) and comes with no less than nine built-in neutral-density (ND) filters for controlling exposure.

DJI's Ronin 4D cinema camera has a built-in gimbal and LiDAR focus system
DJI

It's available either in a 6K model that can handle 6K at 60fps and 4K at 120fps, or an 8K 75 fps version. It can capture files in RAW, ProRes or H.264, allowing maximum flexibility in production. DJI claims 14 stops of dynamic range, and it should be good in low-light thanks to the dual-native 800/5000 ISO. 

The gimbal itself is one of the first to offer Z-axis stabilization, DJI said. The aim is to reduce vertical jarring when a camera operator walks or runs, a trick that usually requires considerable skill. Helping in that regard is the Ronin 4D's relatively small size and 4.67 kg (10.3 pounds) heft, excluding the lens and storage card. It uses data from downward time of flight (ToF) sensors, forward and downward dual-visual sensors, a built-in IMU and a barometer. It also comes with DJI's ActiveTrack Pro (similar to that found on its consumer gimbals and drones), which uses AI to power framing and tracking. 

DJI's Ronin 4D cinema camera has a built-in gimbal and LiDAR focus system
tomgo.tang/DJI

As for the LiDAR focusing system, it offers "43,200 ranging points reaching as far as 10 meters, locating subjects quickly and accurately, even in low-light environments," DJI said in a press release. It didn't mention any other autofocus technology used by the camera, though it "supports human face/body recognition and framing of any subject." It also noted that the system "measures the distance to the subject without relying on surface textures or hunting for edges," implying it doesn't employ contrast-detect AF. 

The system supports full autofocus, manual focus and "Automated Manual Focus" (AMF) that allows camera operators to "pull focus with extreme precision." The general idea with AMF is that the autofocus handles most AF chores, but allows the operate to intervene manually at any point. 

DJI's Ronin 4D cinema camera has a built-in gimbal and LiDAR focus system
DJI

Other features including a long range (20,000 feet) video transmitter that outputs a 1080/60p feed to remote monitors, three storage methods (USB SSD, CFexpress Type-B and DJI's proprietary PROSSD 1TB), built-in microphones along with 3.5mm mic ports and XLR ports via an expansion plate, and a battery with up to 2.5 hours of shooting time. 

The Ronin 4D with a 6K camera costs $7,199, while the 8K model is $11,499. Both come with the gimbal, camera, LiDAR range finder, a monitor, hand grips, top handle, a carrying case and a battery. That's a lot, of course, but less than some cinema camera systems by themselves — and DJI's Ronin 2 cinema stabilizer runs $8,000-plus without any camera at all.