Motorola Mobility Beat Street Targets
By Scott Moritz 04/28/11 - 04:26 PM EDTAdd Comment
Stock quotes in this article:MMI, AAPL
NEW YORK, (TheStreet) -- Motorola Mobility(MMI_) defied naysayers with a strong sales beat and lighter-than-expected losses.
The Schaumburg, Ill. phone maker posted an adjusted loss of 8 cents a share, narrower than the 48 cent loss in the year-ago quarter and better than the 12 cent loss analysts had expected.
Sales for the first quarter were $3.03 billion, up 22% from the $2.5 billion revenue level a year ago and well above the $2.84 billion analysts were looking for.
The company says it sold 4.1 million smartphones, far more then the 3 million many analysts had expected. Motorola also says it shipped more than 250,000 XOOM tablets, a number that does not necessarily compare with retail sales.
The first quarter was not expected to be an easy one for the Android device maker. Sales of the popular Apple(AAPL_) iPhone at Verizon(VZ_) robbed Motorola of its leading position. And sales of the HTC Thunderbolt 4G probably didn't help Motorola at all.
"With a well-recognized brand, a strong balance sheet and industry leading intellectual property, we have the right assets to deliver an exciting pipeline of products, continue to grow our business and further improve our financial results," CEO Sanjay Jha said in a press release Thursday.
Looking ahead, Motorola said it expects to swing to break even in the second quarter. The company is guiding for a net income between 0 to 12 cents a share, that is a range lower than the 12 cents analysts were looking for.
Motorola shares, which have dropped 18% this year on fears of heavy competition, rose 2% to $24.50 in afterhours trading Thursday.
--Written by Scott Moritz in New York. |
