** FLEX $17~$18 Swings to 3Q Profit, Boosts 4Q Forecast
Tuesday January 27, 5:25 pm ET
SINGAPORE -- Flextronics International Ltd. (NasdaqNM:FLEX - News) swung to a profit in its fiscal third quarter as sales rose 7.8%. The company also boosted its fiscal fourth-quarter forecast.
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For the third quarter ended Dec. 31, the contract electronics manufacturer late Tuesday reported net income of $21.4 million, or four cents a share, compared with a net loss of $6.5 million, or one cent a share, a year earlier.
Excluding restructuring charges and other items, the company said it had earnings of $93.9 million, or 17 cents a share, compared with earnings of $66.2 million, or 13 cents a share, a year earlier.
The mean estimate of analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call (News - Websites) was for earnings of 14 cents a share. The company in October expected earnings, excluding items, of 13 cents to 15 cents a share.
Net sales increased to $4.15 billion from $3.85 billion a year earlier, ahead of its October forecast for sales of $3.6 billion to $3.9 billion.
"We believe that next year should show improvement in several areas," Michael E. Marks, Flextronics' chief executive, said in a prepared statement. "Major restructurings in the industry should be nearly completed, excess equipment capacity should be substantially reduced, and demand should continue to improve."
As for the fiscal fourth quarter, Flextronics now expects earnings, excluding items, of nine cents to 11 cents a share on revenue of about $3.4 billion to $ 3.6 billion, ahead of its October projection for earnings of seven cents to nine cents a share on sales of $3 billion to $3.3 billion.
Analysts are looking for earnings of eight cents a share, according to First Call. In the year-earlier fiscal fourth quarter, Flextronics posted earnings, excluding items, of five cents a share on sales of $3.06 billion.
The company, which is based in Singapore but operates from San Jose, Calif., reported its results after the market close. At 4 p.m. EST on the Nasdaq Stock Market (News - Websites) , shares of Flextronics were down 70 cents, or 3.9%, at $17.07. In after- hours trading, Flextronics' shares climbed to $18.04, according to INET.
-Mike Lucas; Dow Jones Newswires; 609-520-5829 |
