Q3 Vizio TV Shipments Up 27% Sequentially Despite Supply Chain Woes

Vizio is navigating through the supply-chain disruptions that are affecting “so many other companies,” said Chief Financial Officer Adam Townsend on a Q3 earnings call Tuesday. “As inventories bottomed out in early July, we made strategic investments to rebuild shelf inventories as much as possible in advance of the holiday season.” Some of those actions had an impact on gross margins, but they were “prudent steps” to help build “customer acquisitions in the short term,” he said. Vizio shipped 1.4 million smart TVs in Q3, up 27.3% sequentially from Q2 but 36% fewer than the 2.1 million sets it shipped in third-quarter 2020 during surging demand from COVID-19 lockdowns. The results were in keeping with Townsend’s projections on Vizio’s Aug. 4 call when he said the company expected Q3 sequential growth in TV unit shipments from Q2, “as we continue to replenish low channel inventories and benefit from sustained demand.” Q3 device revenue declined 8% year over year to $502.5 million, but “platform+” revenue from ad-supported streaming Vizio’s SmartCast operating system increased 134% to $85.9 million, beating the high point of the Aug. 4 guidance range by $3.9 million.