Wacom 2009 Annual Report Download - page 8

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How did we do in our 26th year?
Where are we heading in our 27th year?
Your dividend
Our message to you
The 26th fiscal year was marked by the unprecedented
scale of changes in the global economy. The financial crisis,
rapid economic slow down and currency exchange rate
fluctuation were among these changes and Wacom’s
business was not free from their impact. Even today, the
global economy seems full of uncertainties and recovery
seems slow in coming.
Up to Q2, in spite of the signs of slow down, our business
grew steadily and achieved a record in revenue and profit.
However, the trend changed dramatically in Q3 as the
financial crisis spread from the United States to all key
regions. Channel contraction started and the Japanese
currency appreciation gained pace. As a result, we had to
make forecast adjustments twice during the second half
alone and closed the fiscal year with negative growth in
both revenue and profit.
While this business result was not in line with our original
expectation, we were able to make significant progress in
the areas of R&D and product development. We developed
an original multi-finger touch technology that detects an
unlimited number of fingers with high precision and speed,
new generation digital DJ equipment “nextbeat”, as well as
the development and launch of “Intuos4 series” a new
generation of professional pen tablets. These successful
projects laid the foundation for our growth into new
business segments. Also, we continued to enhance our
infrastructure in emerging markets by the founding of
Wacom Taiwan and a new logistic center in Singapore.
“Open up. Sense more,” the new corporate brand concept
introduced in FY26 is gaining momentum and has started to
have positive effects on our business. At a corporate level,
the settlement of Chinese IP litigation, and the J-SOX
compliant internal process were among key activities we
focused on.
As a result, for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2009, we
recorded net sales of ¥33,809 million (down 8.0%), operat-
ing income of ¥4,311 million (down 22.2%), ordinary
income of ¥4,179 million (down 25.1%), and net income of
¥2,579 million (down 26.3%).
To thank you for your support and reflecting the financial
result of the fiscal year, we offered an ordinary dividend of
¥3,000 per share to our shareholders as of March 31, 2009.
Also, we completed the repurchase of 20,000 shares as
part of the investor return for the first time. While we will
manage the financial base carefully, we intend to continue
stable dividend payouts and take other investor return
measures as we see fit.
We are committed to enhancing our corporate value with
ongoing development of exciting new technologies, invest-
ing in talented people and strengthening our business
infrastructure, thus accelerating our business growth and
achieving increased profitability. We also take seriously our
social responsibility as a global company and corporate
citizen, and will continue to improve our corporate gover-
nance and compliance.
Your support is invaluable to us and is essential to our
continuing success. We thank you very much for your
unchanging support.
For the 27th fiscal year, we expect on-going uncertainty in
the global economy. The potential risk of further deteriora-
tion and high volatility in the currency exchange rates may
become real if key regions cannot keep consistent fiscal
policies and stimulus packages. Under such circum-
stances, we take operational stability as the first priority,
and will proactively manage the business risk.
On the other hand, we are witnessing the increase in
demand for digital content on a global scale and emerging
markets maintain their growth. Also a new user interface
field is opening up as multi finger touch operation is
introduced to PC platforms by Windows 7 the new (OS)
operating system from Microsoft. Taking on opportunities
for long term growth, we will continue to invest in new
technologies, new business segments, as well as make
further infrastructure developments.
Taking into account our business outlook and necessary
investments for the future, we project net sales of ¥35,500
million (up 5.0%), operating income of ¥3,550 million (down
17.7%), ordinary income of ¥3,500 million (down 16.2%),
and net income of ¥2,130 million (down 17.4%) for the fiscal
year ending March 31, 2010.