Reuters news reported that Japan Display announced that it on Tuesday it lost a net 247.2 billion yen (US$2.25 billion) in the year through March. That was nearly eight times the 31.7 billion yen loss a year earlier and steeper than the market's average forecast for a 222 billion yen loss.
The report highlighted that was Japan Display's fourth consecutive year of losses, largely due to growing competition from Asian rivals coupled with the impact of slower demand from smartphone manufacturers.
Although the company did not give a standard forecast for the current fiscal year, it did say it was aiming to return to profit in the current year with sales growing around 10 to 20 percent. Markets, however, forecast a loss of 15 billion yen.
The report suggests that the company's troubles stem in part from its delayed adoption of OLED screens that cost the display manufacturer orders from Apple.
The U.S. tech giant, which has accounted for over half of Japan Display’s sales, opted for OLED screens in its latest high-end iPhone X and purchased them from Samsung Electronics.
Japan Display has said it wants to start mass-producing OLED screens to better compete with Samsung, and that it needs a partner who can help finance that effort.
Analysts have said it will need more than 200 billion yen to launch a mass production line for OLED screens.
Japan Display announced in April that it would raise US$518 million through a new share issue and an asset sale, but the move is widely seen as a stop-gap measure and the company is still seeking a capital partner.
Japan Display was formed in 2012 by combining the LCD businesses of Hitachi Ltd, Toshiba Corp and Sony Corp in a deal brokered by the state-backed Innovation Network Corp of Japan (INCJ), its biggest investor.
Note: $1 = 109.8600 yen