Philips this morning reported a fourth-quarter profit of €598 million a result that was ahead of market expectations.
The group said this was achieved by cost savings and a return to profitability at all five divisions.
Net profit improved to €598 million or €0.46 per share, from a loss of €1.53 billion or a loss per share of €1.20 a year earlier. Analysts were forecasting net profit of €419-565 million.
The results included a book profit of €695 million from selling shares in
TSMC, an impairment charge of €139 million for the unit MedQuist and impairment charges of €804 million for the venture LG.Philips Displays.
Sales rose to €9.017 billion from €8.923 billion, also ahead of market expectations of €8.144-8.870 billion. Nominal growth was 1 per cent and currencies had a negative effect of 8 per cent. Comparable sales were up 10 per cent versus a 6 per cent rise in the third quarter.
Operating profit rose to €608 million from €47 million a year earlier, with the semiconductors division improving to a profit of €166 million from a loss of €304 million.
AFP