ULVAC Coating Corporation Overview
ULVAC Coating Corporation is one of a handful of companies in the world that make photomask blanks, the coated quartz or glass plates that photomask makers pattern to produce the masks used in semiconductor and flat-panel-display lithography. The company began in 1970 when its parent developed the world's first chromium-film "hard" mask blank. Today it makes the whole product in-house, from polishing the raw glass and quartz through thin-film sputtering to resist coating, at plants in Japan, Taiwan and China. It says it pioneered low-reflection chrome blanks. It is a mid-tier supplier of semiconductor blanks, mostly binary chrome and MoSi phase-shift blanks for mature and mainstream nodes, and a leader in very large blanks for LCD and OLED displays, with sizes up to 2,100 × 2,600 mm. The ULCOAT group had simple-aggregate sales of JPY 15.45 billion and operating profit of JPY 2.23 billion in FY2026. In December 2026 it is moving from ULVAC, a vacuum-equipment maker, to Inabata, a chemicals and electronics trading house. The move turns it from a non-core subsidiary of an equipment company into the main manufacturing asset in a trader's semiconductor-materials strategy.
What the company does. ULCOAT designs, makes and sells mask blanks, the starting substrate for photomasks. A mask blank is a highly flat, defect-free quartz (or, for some display applications, soda-lime or other glass) plate. One or more sputtered thin films are deposited on it: a light-shielding chromium layer, an anti-reflective chromium oxide/nitride layer, or a molybdenum-silicide (MoSi) phase-shifting layer. A photoresist coat is usually added on top. Photomask manufacturers buy the blanks, write circuit or pixel patterns into them with electron-beam or laser writers, and etch the patterns. The finished masks go to wafer fabs and display-panel fabs for lithography.
The company presents its business in three product families in its group listing: mask blanks for semiconductors, mask blanks for flat-panel displays (FPDs), and MEMS glass. Its own website describes it as the pioneer of low-reflection mask blanks, with chrome-film and MoSi-film products used by semiconductor makers worldwide, and large-format blanks for LCD, OLED and smartphone displays. ULVAC's group directory describes ULCOAT as a company that "manufactures, processes, and sells mask blanks for flat panel displays and semiconductors, and MEMS Glass." The October 2026 transaction notices add quartz-substrate processing to that list.
Business model. ULCOAT is a make-to-specification manufacturer of consumable materials. Revenue comes almost entirely from product sales. There is no material service, subscription or licensing revenue. Polishing and blasting work at FST is mostly captive, though FST also blasts sputtering-equipment parts for other customers. Demand follows two things: the number of new mask sets that photomask shops make, which depends on design starts and node migrations in semiconductors and on new panel models and fab ramps in displays; and replacement cycles for masks that wear out or get contaminated. This gives the business a recurring, consumables-like quality. It is less cyclical than the equipment businesses ULVAC is keeping.
Revenue-model mix.
Product sales (mask blanks, MEMS glass, black-matrix blanks): Share of revenue: Substantially all; Comment: Priced per plate, by size, film stack, defect grade and flatness grade
Processing services (substrate polishing, part blasting): Share of revenue: Minor; Comment: Mostly done inside the group (FST to ULCOAT); some third-party blasting
Licensing / subscription: Share of revenue: None disclosed; Comment: —
Value-chain position. ULCOAT sits between the suppliers of synthetic quartz and specialty glass upstream and the photomask makers downstream (captive mask shops at large chipmakers and display makers, plus merchant mask makers). Its distinguishing feature is vertical integration inside the blank-making step. Transaction disclosures describe it as one of only a few companies worldwide able to run the whole process, from glass processing to finished mask blank. In-house steps include precision polishing (FST), cleaning, sputter deposition on ULVAC-designed vacuum tools, and resist coating.
Customer types and end markets.
Merchant and captive semiconductor photomask makers: End market: Logic, memory, power, analog and MEMS chips at mature and mainstream nodes; Products: 6-inch (6025) chrome binary blanks, MoSi attenuated phase-shift blanks (KrF, ArF), 9-inch blanks for proximity and stepper lithography
FPD photomask makers in Japan, Taiwan, China and Korea: End market: LCD and OLED panels for TVs, monitors, IT and smartphones; Products: Large-format chrome blanks and phase-shift blanks up to 2,100 × 2,600 mm; black-matrix blanks (Taiwan)
MEMS and electronic-component makers: End market: Sensors, optical and micro-devices; Products: MEMS glass
Independent characterisation. ULCOAT is a niche, cash-generative materials company. Its strongest franchise is large display blanks, where it has said it holds roughly half or more of the world market. It is a smaller challenger in semiconductor blanks, where Japanese incumbents with their own quartz and film know-how dominate the leading edge. The company has said its semiconductor sales lean toward general-purpose blanks and that its share of the high-end market is low. Profitability has improved a lot. Group operating margin on a simple-aggregate basis rose from 4.5% in FY2024 to 14.4% in FY2026. The causes were high-resolution OLED-display demand and a quality-improvement programme for semiconductor blanks. ULVAC decided that continued growth would need capital spending it would rather direct to its core semiconductor-equipment business, so the company is now passing to a long-time minority partner.
Strategy
Strategy under ULVAC (to 2026)
The company's stated strategy, from ULVAC group publications in 2017 and 2019:
Become a "comprehensive mask blank manufacturer": that controls every critical process step (polishing, cleaning, film deposition, resist coating) across Japan, Taiwan and China, giving customers "a high-quality, global-scale, stable supply."
Move up the semiconductor value curve: Raise share in ArF and KrF phase-shift blanks for the high-end market, where the company has said its share is low compared with general-purpose blanks.
Expand large PSM blanks: for high-definition displays and for semiconductors.
Pursue the "world's highest mask blank quality": through a group-wide programme with ULVAC, ULVAC Tohoku and ULVAC Techno, using ULVAC's own sputtering equipment.
- Capture growth from IoT, AI and 5G-driven semiconductor demand and from Chinese OLED investment.
Engage employees through open management: Employees can see the previous day's sales and profit and the monthly forecast. Each employee is asked for two improvement proposals a month, and the president gives monthly open briefings at ULCOAT, FST and ULT.
Strategic reset: ULVAC's Value-Up Plan and the divestiture
ULVAC launched its six-year Value-Up Plan (FY2026–FY2031) in August 2025. It aims for consolidated sales of JPY 360 billion and a 22% operating margin by FY2031, with at least 60% of sales from semiconductors and electronics. The plan has two years of business reform followed by four years of growth. It sets aside about 70% of JPY 195 billion in cumulative cash outflows for growth investment and M&A, and explicitly includes divestitures and downsizing. ULVAC's divestitures under the plan include its Chinese materials subsidiary (resolved 12 May 2026) and now ULCOAT.
ULVAC's stated reasons for selling ULCOAT:
-
Demand for film-deposition products (mask blanks) is expected to keep growing, but staying competitive needs continued capital investment.
-
ULVAC will put its resources into semiconductor and electronics equipment growth areas.
-
Inabata, already involved in ULCOAT's sales and operations, is the best owner to run the business. Its customer base, sales network and procurement can be combined with ULCOAT's manufacturing and technology.
Strategy under Inabata (from December 2026)
Inabata places the acquisition within its medium-term plan "New Challenge 2026" and has stated these goals:
-
Expect long-term growth in semiconductor mask blanks, and in higher value-added products for OLED-based FPDs.
-
Use the three-region production network (Japan, China, Taiwan) to grow profits.
Expand semiconductor-related products: and consider further M&A to add technology and commercial rights.
- Strengthen Inabata's semiconductor and electronic-components business, where it already trades materials covering front-end and back-end processes.
Medium-term financial targets
ULCOAT has not published standalone medium-term targets. Inabata is still assessing the effect on its consolidated earnings and has said it will disclose anything material promptly. ULVAC expects only a minor effect on its FY2027 consolidated results.
Products & Services
Semiconductor mask blanks (ULCOAT, Chichibu)
| Product line | Description | Key specifications / capabilities | Target customer | Launch / latest version | Pricing model |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low-reflection chrome binary mask blanks | Quartz substrate with a chromium light-shield and a chromium oxide/nitride anti-reflection layer. This is the company's original product line | Low surface reflectance to cut flare during exposure. Available as hard-coated (no resist) or resist-coated blanks. Standard 6-inch (152 mm) quartz and larger formats | Merchant and captive photomask shops for i-line, KrF and mature-node masks | Hard mask from 1970; low-reflection chrome pioneered in 1972; continuously updated | Per plate. Price varies with size, defect grade and flatness. Not publicly disclosed |
| MoSi attenuated phase-shift mask (PSM) blanks, KrF and ArF | Molybdenum-silicide halftone phase-shifting film, usually under a chrome hard layer, for improved resolution | Phase shift of about 180° at 248 nm (KrF) or 193 nm (ArF). The company targets a higher share of ArF and KrF PSM blanks for the high-end market | Photomask makers serving logic, memory and power-device fabs | Ongoing, with a strategic push since 2016 | — |
| High-transmittance ArF attenuated PSM (development) | A proposed mask structure of a thin MoSiON film plus an etched quartz trench | Higher transmittance than standard 6% halftone, for better image contrast | Advanced-lithography mask makers | Presented at SPIE photomask conferences (late 2010s) | Not commercial / not disclosed |
| 9-inch KrF and ArF PSM blanks | Large-format (9-inch) phase-shift blanks for steppers and scanners using larger masks, and for proximity exposure | Prototype 9-inch KrF PSM built in 2016; 9-inch ArF PSM developed afterwards. High-grade 9-inch Cr binary blanks for proximity exposure | Makers of masks for power devices, MEMS, packaging and specialised lithography | 2016 (KrF prototype); later (ArF) | — |
Flat-panel-display mask blanks (ULCOAT, ULCOAT TAIWAN, ULVAC Coating Technology Hefei)
| Product line | Description | Key specifications / capabilities | Target customer | Launch / latest version | Pricing model |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Large-format chrome binary FPD blanks | Large glass or quartz plates with chrome light-shield and anti-reflection films for TFT-array and colour-filter masks | Sizes up to 2,100 × 2,600 mm, which the company describes as the largest in the industry | FPD photomask makers serving LCD and OLED panel makers in Japan, Korea, Taiwan and China | FPD production since 2000 | — |
| Large-format phase-shift FPD blanks | Halftone and phase-shift films on large plates for high-resolution displays | Aimed at high-definition displays; the company plans to grow its large PSM business for displays and semiconductors | High-resolution LCD and OLED (smartphone, IT) mask makers | Growth product since late 2010s | — |
| Black-matrix blanks | Film-coated plates used to form the light-blocking black matrix in colour filters | Made in Taiwan | Colour-filter and panel makers | Made at ULCOAT TAIWAN | — |
MEMS glass and substrate processing
| Product / service | Description | Entity | Target customer |
|---|---|---|---|
| MEMS glass | Processed glass substrates for micro-electromechanical systems | ULCOAT | MEMS and sensor makers |
| Quartz-substrate processing | Machining, polishing and cleaning of quartz substrates; named in the 2026 transaction notices as a business line | ULCOAT / FST | Internal use and external customers |
| Precision polishing | Polishing of glass substrates for mask blanks to flatness of 0.3 µm or better (the company's comparison: about a 12 cm height difference if scaled to the area of Dubai) | FST | Mostly ULCOAT |
| Blasting of sputtering parts | Surface treatment and cleaning of sputtering-chamber parts | FST | Vacuum-equipment users |
Historical / discontinued lines
| Product | Status |
|---|---|
| Deposition and sputtering equipment sales | Sold earlier in the company's history; discontinued |
| Transparent conductive films for LCDs | Made earlier; discontinued |
| "ST mask" see-through hard masks | The original 1970 product; replaced by modern chrome blank generations |
Financial Narrative
ULCOAT is unlisted and does not publish financial statements. The only figures in the public domain are those in the October 2026 transaction notices from ULVAC and Inabata: two years of standalone income-statement data and three years of combined sales and operating profit. FY2022 and FY2023 figures, the balance sheet, cash flows, EPS, EBITDA and dividends have not been published.
Income statement: ULCOAT standalone
Net income was above operating profit in both years. That points to positive non-operating income: probably dividends from subsidiaries, which a Japanese standalone income statement records as non-operating, plus interest or currency gains, after a normal effective tax rate.
Commentary
Revenue. Combined sales grew at a 14.6% compound rate from FY2024 to FY2026. ULVAC's own FY2026 sales rose 7.1%, and its Vacuum Application segment was flat to modestly up, so ULCOAT outgrew its parent. ULVAC's FY2025 annual review names mask blanks for high-definition, high-performance displays as a growth driver. Inabata's acquisition rationale points to the same driver: higher value-added products for OLED-based displays. ULCOAT standalone grew only 6.0% in FY2026, against 26.7% for the subsidiaries (on the aggregate basis). So incremental growth is coming mostly from overseas production, chiefly Hefei, which serves Chinese OLED and LCD panel makers.
Profitability inflection. Combined operating margin roughly tripled, from 4.5% in FY2024 to 14.4% in FY2026. Operating profit grew fourfold on 31% more sales, which shows high operating leverage. That fits a capital-intensive coating business where depreciation, clean-room overhead and quartz/glass processing labour are largely fixed. The Taiwan unit still made an operating loss in FY2026, so the group margin has not yet reached its potential if Taiwan can be restructured or refocused.
Cash generation and capital intensity. No cash-flow data has been published. ULVAC gave its reason for selling: competitiveness in film deposition will need continued capital investment. That is a strong sign that the business needs heavy maintenance and growth capex: new sputter lines for larger or more defect-critical plates, inspection tools, and capacity in China.
Balance sheet. ULCOAT does not publish a balance sheet. Share capital was JPY 100 million (December 2016), and FST's was JPY 10 million.
Implied valuation and returns. The JPY 4.9 billion price for 65.0% implies JPY 7.54 billion for 100% of the equity, or about JPY 15,575 per share across 314,600 shares. On FY2026 standalone figures that is about 7.5 times net income and 0.85 times sales. On the combined-group basis it is about 0.49 times aggregate sales and 3.4 times aggregate operating profit. Those multiples are low for a semiconductor-materials asset, which suggests the price reflects ULVAC's wish to exit, Inabata's position as the natural buyer, ongoing capex needs and the Taiwan unit's losses.
Ratios that can be derived
ROE, ROA, ROIC, current ratio, debt/equity, net debt/EBITDA, interest coverage, asset turnover and the cash conversion cycle cannot be calculated because no balance-sheet or cash-flow data has been published.
Unlock Company Financials
Unlock this company profile to view its financial data.
View Subscription PlansFinancial Detail
Group Entities
| Entity | Location | Ownership | Function | Main products / services |
|---|---|---|---|---|
ULVAC Coating Corporation (ULCOAT) | Chichibu, Saitama, Japan | ULVAC 65.0% / Inabata 35.0% | Parent operating company; R&D; semiconductor and FPD blank manufacturing | Semiconductor mask blanks (chrome binary, MoSi PSM), FPD mask blanks, MEMS glass, quartz-substrate processing |
Fine Surface Technology Co., Ltd. (FST) | Chichibu, Saitama, Japan | 100% ULCOAT (since 2005) | Precision polishing and blasting | Polishing of glass and quartz substrates for blanks (flatness ≤ 0.3 µm); blasting of sputtering-equipment parts |
ULCOAT TAIWAN, Inc. (台灣成膜光電股份有限公司) | Tainan, Taiwan | ULCOAT subsidiary | Large-format FPD blank production | Large mask blanks, black-matrix blanks |
ULVAC Coating Technology (HEFEI) Co., Ltd. (愛発科成膜技術(合肥)有限公司) | No. 358 Mingzhu Road, Hi-Tech District, Hefei, Anhui, China | ULCOAT subsidiary | FPD blank manufacturing and processing for China | Mask blanks for flat-panel displays |
Segment Revenue
| Perimeter | FY2024 | FY2025 | FY2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
Group combined net sales (simple aggregate, 4 entities) | 11,768 | 13,570 | 15,451 |
ULCOAT standalone net sales | — | 8,417 | 8,920 |
Subsidiaries net sales (combined less standalone, gross of intra-group) | — | 5,153 | 6,531 |
Segment Revenue — Group combined operating profit
| Perimeter | FY2024 | FY2025 | FY2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
Group combined operating profit (simple aggregate) | 530 | 1,612 | 2,231 |
ULCOAT standalone operating profit | — | 883 | 1,076 |
Subsidiaries operating profit (combined less standalone) | — | 729 | 1,155 |
Segment Margins & Growth (%)
| Metric | FY2024 | FY2025 | FY2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
Group combined operating margin (%) | 4.5 | 11.9 | 14.4 |
ULCOAT standalone operating margin (%) | — | 10.5 | 12.1 |
Subsidiaries operating margin (%) | — | 14.1 | 17.7 |
Group combined sales growth YoY (%) | — | 15.3 | 13.9 |
ULCOAT standalone sales growth YoY (%) | — | — | 6.0 |
Subsidiaries sales growth YoY (%) | — | — | 26.7 |
Revenue by Segment (%)
| Metric | FY2025 | FY2026 |
|---|---|---|
ULCOAT standalone share of combined sales (%) | 62.0 | 57.7 |
Subsidiaries share of combined sales (%) | 38.0 | 42.3 |
ULCOAT standalone share of ULVAC consolidated sales (%) | 3.4 | 3.3 |
Unlock Company Financials
Unlock this company profile to view its financial data.
View Subscription PlansIncome Statement and Margin Analysis (%)
| Metric | FY2025 | FY2026 |
|---|---|---|
Net sales (JPY Mn) | 8,417 | 8,920 |
Operating profit (JPY Mn) | 883 | 1,076 |
Net income (JPY Mn) | 951 | 1,010 |
Operating margin (%) | 10.5 | 12.1 |
Net margin (%) | 11.3 | 11.3 |
Growth metric | FY2026 | — |
Net sales growth YoY (%) | 6.0 | — |
Operating profit growth YoY (%) | 21.9 | — |
Net income growth YoY (%) | 6.2 | — |
Unlock Company Financials
Unlock this company profile to view its financial data.
View Subscription PlansKey Financials and Margin Analysis (%)
| Metric | FY2024 | FY2025 | FY2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
Combined net sales (JPY Mn) | 11,768 | 13,570 | 15,451 |
Combined operating profit (JPY Mn) | 530 | 1,612 | 2,231 |
Combined operating margin (%) | 4.5 | 11.9 | 14.4 |
Growth metric (%)
| Growth metric (%) | FY2025 | FY2026 |
|---|---|---|
Combined net sales growth YoY (%) | 15.3 | 13.9 |
Combined operating profit growth YoY (%) | 204.2 | 38.4 |
CAGR metric | FY2024–FY2026 | — |
Combined net sales CAGR (%) | 14.6 | — |
Combined operating profit CAGR (%) | 105.2 | — |
Margin Analysis (%) and Balance Sheet
| Ratio | FY2025 | FY2026 |
|---|---|---|
Standalone operating margin (%) | 10.5 | 12.1 |
Standalone net margin (%) | 11.3 | 11.3 |
Combined operating margin (%) | 11.9 | 14.4 |
Transaction-implied metric | Value | — |
Implied 100% equity value (JPY Mn) | 7,538 | — |
Implied P/E, standalone FY2026 (x) | 7.5 | — |
Implied equity value / standalone FY2026 sales (x) | 0.85 | — |
Implied equity value / combined FY2026 sales (x) | 0.49 | — |
Implied equity value / combined FY2026 operating profit (x) | 3.4 | — |
Production base
| Production base | Primary markets served | Commentary |
|---|---|---|
Chichibu, Japan (ULCOAT + FST) | Global semiconductor photomask makers; Japanese and Asian FPD mask makers | Semiconductor blanks and the most demanding large FPD blanks; R&D centre. Standalone sales of JPY 8.92 billion in FY2026 |
Tainan, Taiwan (ULCOAT TAIWAN) | Taiwanese panel and colour-filter makers; Asian FPD mask makers | Large blanks and black matrix. Made an operating loss in FY2026 |
Hefei, China (ULVAC Coating Technology Hefei) | Chinese FPD photomask makers and panel makers (BOE, Visionox, CSOT and others in the Chinese display cluster) | Set up in 2018 to supply FPD blanks inside China. Profitable in its year to December 2025 |
Valuation Snapshot
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
Price for 65.0% (JPY Mn) | 4,900 |
Shares transferred | 314,600 |
Implied price per share (JPY) | 15,575 |
Implied 100% equity value (JPY Mn) | 7,538 |
Implied P/E on FY2026 standalone net income (x) | 7.5 |
Implied equity value / FY2026 standalone sales (x) | 0.85 |
Implied equity value / FY2026 combined sales (x) | 0.49 |
Implied equity value / FY2026 combined operating profit (x) | 3.4 |
Peer Comparison
| Company | Ticker | Close 27 Oct 2026 (JPY) | Close 6 Nov 2026 (JPY) | Change (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
ULVAC, Inc. | TSE 6728 | 7,571 | 6,437 | -15.0 |
Inabata & Co., Ltd. | TSE 8098 | 4,505 | 4,100 | -9.0 |
Per-Share Data
| Metric | FY2024 | FY2025 |
|---|---|---|
ULVAC dividend per share (JPY) | 144 | 164 |
Analyst Conclusions
Management guidance. No standalone guidance has been published for ULCOAT. ULVAC expects the divestiture to have a minor effect on its FY2027 results. Inabata is still assessing the effect on its consolidated results and will disclose any material effect. Inabata's stated direction is to grow semiconductor mask blanks and higher value-added OLED blanks using the Japan–China–Taiwan production network, and to look at further M&A.
Bull case
-
Margin momentum. Combined operating margin rose from 4.5% to 14.4% in two years, and standalone operating profit grew 21.9% in FY2026. If Taiwan merely breaks even, group margins could pass 15% without any growth in sales.
-
Commercial reach under a trading-house owner. Inabata's revenue base (JPY 832.75 billion in FY3/2026) and its established semiconductor-materials distribution could open accounts ULCOAT struggled to win alone, especially among Chinese and Southeast Asian photomask makers.
-
Display-capex tailwind. The Hefei plant sits in the same city as Visionox's USD 7.6 billion Gen-8.6 AMOLED fab, and Inabata explicitly targets higher-value OLED blanks, a segment where ULCOAT already leads in large formats.
Bear case
-
Capex needs without a deep-pocketed equipment parent. ULVAC sold partly because staying competitive needs continued investment. Inabata is a trader with no deposition-equipment expertise, and it must fund new lines while losing preferential access to ULVAC's process engineering.
-
Squeezed on both sides. At the high end, Shin-Etsu, HOYA and AGC, with in-house quartz and EUV leadership, hold the most valuable segments. At the low end, Chinese challengers backed by localisation policy are moving into chrome and FPD blanks.
-
Display-technology risk. Maskless OLED patterning (Visionox ViP, Applied Materials MAX OLED) and a maturing LCD market could cut blank demand per panel, while Taiwan is already loss-making.
Key catalysts and monitorables (next 12 months)
18 December 2026: Catalyst / monitorable: Closing of the share transfer; first disclosures of the post-closing management team
Inabata Q3 FY3/2027 results (February 2027): Catalyst / monitorable: First quantification of ULCOAT's contribution and any acquisition accounting (goodwill or gain on step-up of the existing 35% stake)
Inabata FY3/2027 results and new medium-term plan (May 2027): Catalyst / monitorable: ULCOAT-specific targets, capex plans and M&A pipeline following "New Challenge 2026"
ULVAC FY2027 results (August 2027): Catalyst / monitorable: Effect of the deconsolidation on the Vacuum Application segment
Ongoing: Catalyst / monitorable: Restructuring or refocusing of ULCOAT TAIWAN; capacity additions at Hefei; ramp of Gen-8.6 OLED fabs in China
Ongoing: Catalyst / monitorable: Any supply or technology agreement between ULCOAT and ULVAC after closing
Analyst verdict
ULVAC Coating Corporation is a small but strategically meaningful asset in one of the most concentrated corners of the semiconductor materials supply chain. It is one of five companies that together supply more than 90% of the world's mask blanks. In very large display blanks it is arguably the market leader: the company has put its share at roughly half to 60%. It can make blanks of 2,100 × 2,600 mm and controls the whole process from polishing to resist coating. Those are real barriers to entry built over 47 years.
The financial path is better than ULVAC's decision to sell might suggest. Aggregate sales grew at 14.6% a year from FY2024 to FY2026 and operating margin more than tripled to 14.4%. The standalone company earned JPY 1.01 billion net on JPY 8.92 billion of sales in FY2026. The purchase price implies about 7.5 times standalone earnings and about 3.4 times aggregate operating profit, which looks inexpensive for a profitable semiconductor-materials maker. Inabata has the advantage of a 39-year relationship and an existing 35% stake, which lowers integration risk.
The constraints are just as clear. ULCOAT is a mainstream supplier in semiconductors, not a leading-edge one. It has no visible EUV position, depends on quartz from larger competitors, and runs a loss-making Taiwan plant. Its new owner is a distributor, not a technology company, so the next phase depends on Inabata funding capex and keeping access to vacuum-process expertise that used to come from inside the ULVAC group.
On balance, ULCOAT is best seen as a well-placed, cash-generative niche leader moving from an owner that saw it as non-core to one that sees it as central. The equity is not traded, so the investable expression is Inabata. ULCOAT is likely to be the most profitable manufacturing business in Inabata's semiconductor portfolio and a platform for the further M&A Inabata has signalled. The key things to watch over the next year are post-closing capex commitments, progress in fixing Taiwan, and whether ULCOAT can turn its display leadership and Inabata's distribution into a larger share of higher-end phase-shift semiconductor blanks.
Unlock Company Financials
Unlock this company profile to view its financial data.
View Subscription PlansExecutive Leadership
Executive Leadership Team
| Name | Role | Period | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Yoshinori Gonokami | President and CEO, ULCOAT | Named in ULVAC's October 2017 group magazine | Led the 2014–2016 quality programme and the strategy to raise ArF/KrF PSM share |
Yoshinori Kida | President and CEO, ULCOAT | Named in ULVAC's December 2019 group magazine | Set out the plan to become a "comprehensive mask blank manufacturer" and the Hefei start-up |
Hiroyuki Nawa | President and CEO, FST | Named in 2017 | Polishing subsidiary |
Mitsuru Motoyoshi | Former Chairman, ULCOAT TAIWAN, Inc. | Earlier period | Also a former Director and Vice President of ULVAC, Inc. (2020–2023) |
Chikara Hayashi | Vice President (later President and Chairman) of ULVAC | Late 1960s–1970s | Sponsored the original chromium-film mask development |
Major Shareholders
| Holder | Shares | Stake (%) | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
ULVAC, Inc. | 314,600 | 65.0 | To be sold to Inabata on 18 December 2026 |
Inabata & Co., Ltd. | 169,400 | 35.0 | Shareholder since 1987; to own 100.0% after closing |
Total | 484000 | 100.0 | As of 27 October 2026, per the ULVAC and Inabata transaction notices. Inabata's share count is derived from the percentages |
Competitive Landscape
Key Competitors
| Competitor | Country | Segment overlap with ULCOAT | Relative positioning |
|---|---|---|---|
Shin-Etsu Chemical (Shin-Etsu MicroSi) | Japan | Semiconductor blanks (chrome, MoSi PSM, OMOG binary) | Market leader in DUV semiconductor blanks; makes its own synthetic quartz; developed the MoSi-based binary absorber (OMOG) |
HOYA Corporation | Japan | Semiconductor blanks (DUV and EUV); FPD blanks | Technology leader in leading-edge and EUV blanks; strong in FPD masks |
AGC Inc. | Japan | Semiconductor blanks (EUV), quartz substrates | Major EUV blank supplier; integrated glass maker |
S&S Tech | South Korea | Semiconductor blanks and FPD blanks | Main Korean supplier; benefits from Samsung/SK hynix localisation |
SKC (SK Enpulse) | South Korea | Semiconductor blanks | Korean entrant backed by the SK group |
Telic Company | USA | Semiconductor and specialty blanks | Niche US supplier |
CST Co., Ltd. | Japan | Blanks and substrates | Smaller Japanese competitor |
Hunan Puzhao | China | FPD and semiconductor blanks | Chinese domestic challenger backed by localisation policy |
Shaoguan Xincai (Shaoguang Xincai) | China | Blanks | Chinese domestic challenger |
Tosoh (Tosoh Quartz) | Japan | Quartz substrates (upstream) | With Shin-Etsu, cited as holding about 50% of the high-end substrate market; a supplier and potential competitor in substrate processing |
Peer Comparison FY2026
| Dimension | ULCOAT | Shin-Etsu (blanks) | HOYA (blanks) | AGC (blanks) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Ownership | Private; Inabata subsidiary from December 2026 | Division of a listed chemicals conglomerate | Division of a listed optics/glass group | Division of a listed glass group |
Strongest franchise | Very large FPD blanks | DUV semiconductor blanks | Leading-edge and EUV blanks; FPD | EUV blanks; quartz |
In-house quartz synthesis | No (processes purchased substrates) | Yes | Partial | Yes |
EUV capability | None publicly disclosed | Not a leader | Leader | Leader |
Production footprint | Japan, Taiwan, China | Japan-centred | Japan and Asia | Japan-centred |
