ESPOO (dpa-AFX) - Nokia Corp. (NOK), which recently completed the sale of substantially all of its Devices & Services business to Microsoft Corp. (MSFT), Thursday reported a profit for the second quarter, benefited by the sale of the handset business.
The firm also boosted Nokia Networks' operating margin expectations for the full year. The shares rose about 6 percent in Helsinki.
Including the 3.2 billion euros gain from discontinued operations, the group's net profit totaled 2.51 billion euros or 0.61 euros per share, compared with a net loss of 226 million euros or 0.06 euros per share in the year-ago quarter.
For the second quarter, the company's loss for continuing operations was 28 million euros or 0.01 euros per share, compared with a loss of 58 million euros or 0.02 euros per share in the previous year.
On a non-IFRS basis, earnings per share from continuing operations totaled 0.06.
Operating profit was 284 million euros, up from 12 million euros a year ago.
Quarterly net sales from continuing operations slid 7 percent to 2.94 billion euros from 3.16 billion euros last year. Net sales from discontinued operations were 497 million euros, down 81 percent from a year ago.
Nokia Networks sales declined 8 percent to 2.57 billion euros. Excluding foreign currency fluctuations and divestments of businesses as well as the exiting of certain customer contracts and countries, Nokia Networks net sales edged up 1 percent from last year.
In the HERE business, net sales were 232 million euros, unchanged from last year. Excluding foreign currency fluctuations, HERE net sales in the recent quarter would have increased 2 percent, the company said.
Net sales from Nokia Technologies edged up 1 percent to 147 million euros. Nokia Technologies net sales increased from the sequential first quarter, mainly due to Microsoft becoming a more significant intellectual property licensee related to the sale of substantially all of the Devices & Services business to Microsoft.
Looking ahead, Nokia still expects Nokia Networks' net sales to grow on a year-on-year basis in the second half 2014. After the sale of its Devices & Services business, the company's main business is its Networks division.
Nokia now expects Nokia Networks' non-IFRS operating margin for the full year 2014 to be at or slightly above the high end of Nokia Networks' targeted long-term non-IFRS operating margin range of 5 to 10 percent. This compares to Nokia's previous outlook for Networks non-IFRS operating margin for 2014 to be towards the higher end of targeted long-term non-IFRS operating margin range of 5 to 10 percent.
Nokia expects Nokia Technologies' annualized net sales to continue at a run rate of about 600 million euros during 2014.
In Helsinki, the stock is currently trading at 6.06 euros, up 5.86 percent.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX