HTC shares tumble as Samsung confirms Galaxy launch date

A six per cent drop in HTC's share price has been blamed on the departure of its CFO and the threat of a new smartphone from arch rival Samsung.

HTC has been losing market share to Samsung and Apple in the cut-throat smartphone market, and its results have lagged forecasts since the fourth quarter of last year.

"When a company changes its CFO, it often indicates that the company's operations or financials have reached a bottleneck," said Tom Tang, a vice president at Masterlink Investment Advisory in Taipei.

HTC confirmed the appointment of Chia-Lin Chang, a former Goldman Sachs partner and Motorola engineer, as its new CFO in a statement yesterday.

He replaces Winston Yung who will take on a new role in HTC's corporate development team.

Former contract maker HTC had a fairytale ride in 2010 and early 2011, when its shares more than tripled in the 14 months to April 2011 as consumers snapped up its innovative phones with their distinctive large clock numerals.

But it suffered an equally rapid fall from grace as its devices failed to keep up with Apple's iPhones and Samsung's Galaxy range. It shocked investors in November by slashing its earnings forecast, and its stock ended up as the worst performer among global smartphone companies last year, down 42 percent.

HTC now faces another challenge after the earlier than expected roll-out of Samsung's third-generation flagship smartphone, Galaxy S, which will leave HTC less opportunity to claw back market share.

The Korean firm is to launch the new gadget in London on 3 May, a month earlier than expected.

Samsung has sold over 40 million Galaxy smartphones since the model was released in June 2010. The firm recently announced that its first-quarter operating profit would hit a record 5.8 trillion won ($5 billion) thanks to strong sales of the phones.

Earlier this month, HTC launched its new One series of models with fast graphic chips and advanced music and photography functions in the market, banking on them to regain its market share. The series has received generally positive reviews from analysts and tech bloggers.

However sales of HTC's One X and S products have not increased meaningfully in Western Europe since its launch, noted Pacific Crest analyst James Faucette in a report yesterday.

Goldman Sachs analyst Robert Yen said in a note to clients on Monday that to have a CFO with industry and banking background may create a different value for the company.

"We believe the change in CFO may indicate HTC's more aggressive attitude toward its finance department in terms of creating value other than just accounting integrity, especially the value in enhancing the uniqueness and competitiveness of its smartphone products and services," Yen said.