LG Display turned a profit in Q2 and continued to strengthen its OLED TV panel business

LG Display released its second-quarter financial report showing that due to rising LCD panel prices and improved OLED panel business, it achieved a net profit of 423.8 billion won in the quarter, an increase of 59.4% compared with the previous quarter, turning losses into profits year-on-year.

According to documents submitted by LG Display to the regulatory authorities, sales in the quarter were 6.96 trillion won, a slight increase of 1.2% from the previous quarter and a year-on-year increase of 31.3%, setting a record for the second quarter in history; operating profit was 701.1 billion won, an increase of 34% from the previous quarter, and the first time in four years that it exceeded 700 billion won;

LG Display said that in the second quarter, display panel shipments reached 8.9 million square meters, up from 6.7 million square meters in the same period last year; the average selling price of panels reached $703 per square meter, up from $654 in the same period last year. In addition, the company's production capacity also increased from 9.3 million square meters a year ago to 11.6 million square meters.

By product category, IT panels accounted for 39% of sales in the quarter, TV panels accounted for 38%, and mobile phone and other product panels accounted for 23% of sales.

LG Display said in its earnings call that it plans to strengthen its OLED TV panel business by expanding profits from its large-size OLED business in the second half of this year and achieving an operating profit margin in the mid-to-high single digit by 2022.

LG Display expects OLED TV panel sales to reach 8 million units this year, with 3.5 million units shipped in the first half of the year. In addition, as the production capacity of the Guangzhou OLED factory in China is expanded, the company expects the supply of OLED TV panels to reach 10 million units next year and 11 million units in 2023. The company is also said to be studying the expansion of plastic OLED panel production capacity.

In addition, for the liquid crystal panel (LCD) business, LG Display has converted a large number of LCD production lines into IT panel production lines, while some production lines are undergoing transformation.

LG Display said it has plans to deal with a possible drop in LCD panel prices. LCD TV panel revenue accounts for slightly more than 15% of its total revenue.