[RonHendriks1966]

So, in comparison to last year Smart Vision sales went up 2.3% during the first quarter (April-June), from ¥4.3bn to ¥4.4bn, and down 11.3% during the second quarter (July-September), from ¥5.3bn to ¥4.7bn.





Where did you find this piece of information?

-5,2 % was combined from the first half year.

The information about industrial camera was in one of the pdf files (I don't collect those).

[OoKU]

https://www.ricoh.com/IR/financial_data/financial_result/data/31/q3_report.pdf

[Kunzite]

Q3 financial report posted. Basically it's the same as the last - some unknown "reduction of lineup" decreased sales, but profit is increased.
Q4 will likely be similar.

What's this "reduction of lineup", anyway? From Pentax, I can only think of Q - as it's the only thing that was somehow "reduced"... but that can't be it, too small.
Smart Vision includes other things beside Ricoh Imaging (industrial cameras are mentioned).
We'd need to move on the next FY to properly compare.

[biz-engineer]

Very interesting about photography. This financial report definitely help me take good photographs. That's what we are at.

[Kunzite]

Very interesting about photography. This financial report definitely help me take good photographs. That's what we are at.

This is more of a

You Tube

You Tube

sort of thing.

[beholder3]

Lets wait for the first lonely internet moron to interpret something intentionally made up into the generic numbers (not the above quoted texts which clearly do relate to the camera part) .
I bet on some other site there will be enough of those. Not here, though.

Another turn of the wheel.

[RGlasel]

Basically it's the same as the last - some unknown "reduction of lineup" decreased sales, but profit is increased.

Something has been happening in the Other division to significantly reduce sales in this segment (almost -20% for April to December 2018 vs. same period 2017) for a year now and it is not happening (relatively speaking) in the domestic market. That would exclude healthcare and financial services and since digital cameras are only a tenth of Other, Pentax can't be the only reason. The worst sales decrease (-32.6%) for this segment is in the Other region (which is Pacific and Asia-not including Japan) and for the Other business segment, the Other region accounts for 70% of its Overseas sales. Maybe the Chinese quit buying 3D printers from Ricoh. At least operating margins for this segment have radically improved from 2.8% to 10.3%, even though its share of Ricoh's overall business dropped from 10.3% to 8.2% (comparing just 3rd quarters).

The only real news I could find in this report is the 7% reduction in SG&A (selling, general and administrative) expense, which appears to be sustainable since the difference between 3rd quarter 2017 and 3rd quarter 2018 is still more than 6%. Gross sales margins for all of Ricoh Company have dropped from 39.3% for 3rd quarter 2017 to 38.1% in 3rd quarter 2018, so the increase in profitability (in every segment except thermal printing, which has problems with rising raw material costs) is entirely due to cost cutting. The new chairman seems to have accomplished his mission. Office printing (photocopiers) hasn't hit bottom yet, but it is profitable and still represents more than half of Ricoh's revenue. What does this have to do with Pentax? Not much, except there doesn't appear to be any good reason to sell of any or all of Ricoh Imaging.

[fsge]

Q3 financial report posted. Basically it's the same as the last - some unknown "reduction of lineup" decreased sales, but profit is increased.
Q4 will likely be similar.

What's this "reduction of lineup", anyway? From Pentax, I can only think of Q - as it's the only thing that was somehow "reduced"... but that can't be it, too small.
Smart Vision includes other things beside Ricoh Imaging (industrial cameras are mentioned).
We'd need to move on the next FY to properly compare.

I am sure Mistral will have an opinion about that!

[RonHendriks1966]

We haven't seen the complete presentation yet. Not much is told about camera. It looks like sales of camera is dropping fast outside of Japan. Maybe we will see some in the presentation tomorrow or at the year report in 3 months.

[Mistral75]

Something has been happening in the Other division to significantly reduce sales in this segment (almost -20% for April to December 2018 vs. same period 2017) for a year now and it is not happening (relatively speaking) in the domestic market. (...)

The reason is the sale of two businesses: semiconductors and logistics. See page #10 of https://www.ricoh.com/IR/data/pre/pdf/h31q3_1.pdf

[Erictator]

We haven't seen the complete presentation yet. Not much is told about camera. It looks like sales of camera is dropping fast outside of Japan. Maybe we will see some in the presentation tomorrow or at the year report in 3 months.

Ya know, I have owned and run a small IT firm for almost 30yrs and still retain some of my original clients... I've seen big, scary, monster size conglomerates come to town... and crumble from their own top-heavy infrastructures. I've stayed lean and mean, I don't owe anyone a dime, and I've never hired more staff than was absolutely needed, and I have never taken myself out of the trenches. No top heavy management allowed that isn't pulling their weight.

When I first went into business, AmEx offered to meet with me and sent an "adviser". Ya know what their advice was? Take out a loan of 5 million dollars, hire staff, pay myself a handsome salary, and make the business "look successful" then dump the business off on some sucker by selling it for even more profit in 3 years. Ya know what? I told him to STUFF IT! I didn't start my business to get rich, I do it because I enjoy doing it and making decent living while making my clients more profitable and happy via stable IT. That is a mindset that is totally lost on the financial moguls of today. Sure, my exit strategy will eventually mean having to sell off the business, but I won't be selling it off to some faceless corp idiots who will run it into the ground, but more likely to one of my staff who I have been grooming.

If Ricoh wants to go the low and slow route, and can stay lean and mean while the giants over extend themselves, I think Ricoh could potentially outlast them and pick up decent market share (in pure numbers, compared to what they do now) of the "dwindling market". Hey, being the last remaining buggy whip manufacturer can have it's positive side too ya know.
Eric

[Mistral75]

I am sure Mistral will have an opinion about that!

It's not an opinion, just facts and/or statements made by Ricoh:

• Sales went down 15.1% for the quarter and down 8.7% for the nine-month period
• 'Earnings' (I presume they mean the operating result) 'rose despite sales falling from narrowing down of products' ()
• 'Ricoh Theta and other products' (which ones?) 'performed well.'

[RonHendriks1966]

It's not an opinion, just facts and/or statements made by Ricoh:

• Sales went down 15.1% for the quarter and down 8.7% for the nine-month period
• 'Earnings' (I presume they mean the operating result) 'rose despite sales falling from narrowing down of products' ()
• 'Ricoh Theta and other products' (which ones?) 'performed well.'

This downside of sales of 15 % is even with adding the industrial camera that was not in the figures a year ago. Sales of Pentax are a bit more down I guess. We will see how this turn out in 2019 when everyone and their grand is buying mirrorless (or not).

The narrowing down of products.....maybe this means they keep a lower supply in their warehouse?

---------- Post added 07-02-19 at 17:50 ----------

"Earnings rose despite sales falling from narrowing down of products
Ricoh THETA and other products performed well".

They simply "copy and paste" in their financial reports....

[Kunzite]

They simply "copy and paste" in their financial reports....

Since things are more or less the same...

Anyway, Pentax survived another quarter.

[normhead]

Profit is up. Companies that make profits keep on keeping on. I've never once heard someone say 'I'm folding this company because I no longer care about making profits."

That for me is the end of the discussion. Wake me up when they stop turning profits.