Nokia Sales Off 12% In Q1, But Earnings On Target
4/18/02
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HELSINKI, FINLAND, Apr 18, 2002 (Newsbytes via COMTEX) -- Nokia [NYSE:NOK], the world's largest manufacturer of mobile phones, said today that first-quarter sales of 7.01 billion euros ($6.2 billion U.S.) were a billion euros ($883 million) less than they were a year ago, a 12 percent drop that is expected to put investors off the company's stock when trading opens today in the U.S.
Nokia shares tumbled nearly 10 percent on the Stockholm Stock Exchange after the company trimmed 20 million units from the number of handsets it now expects to sell during the entire year.
Nokia, which had earlier predicted sales would grow by 15 percent in 2002, said it now expects to see revenue up by just 4 percent to 9 percent, with handset sales in the range of 400 million to 420 million units, compared to sales of 380 million units in 2001.
The company said sales in its network-equipment division fell a dramatic 29 percent to 1.4 billion euros ($1.2 billion), outstripping its own estimate of a 25 percent decline.
Although sales were lower than analysts had been expecting, the company said its net profit of 863 million euros (nearly $767 million) - about 0.18 euros per share (or 0.19 euros on a pro forma basis) - matched previous estimates.
A year ago, the company reported a profit of 975 million euros ($866 million), or 0.20 euros per share, on revenue of 8.01 billion euros ($7.1 billion).
Nokia said it now estimates that second-quarter pro forma earnings per share will range from 0.18 euros to 0.20 euros, with a full- year profit of 0.83 euros per share. |
