Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD)

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NOKIA in context. Question: does AMD sell to Samsung?
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http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B55F0F668%2D09BC%2D4F35%2D8FA7% 2D0369C7BF767C%7D&siteid=yhoo

Nokia slammed after Q1 sales warning

Group says product mix, lower volumes to blame
By Steve Goldstein, CBS MarketWatch.com
Last Update: 9:47 AM ET April 6, 2004


LONDON (CBS.MW) -- Shares of the world's top maker of mobile phone handsets, Nokia, tumbled after the Finnish group warned that first quarter sales would decline.


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Nokia (NOK: news, chart, profile) shares sank $3.45, or 16.3 percent, to $17.70 in New York trade.

Nokia said first quarter sales would decline 2 percent to around 6.6 billion euros, against prior guidance of a revenue rise of 3 percent to 7 percent, as mobile phone sales declined in Europe and Asia due to lower than expected volumes and a product mix weighted more towards the low end.

Nokia added that it expects first quarter EPS of 17 eurocents per share, against guidance of 17 eurocents-19 eurocents per share.

"Due to certain gaps in its product portfolio, mainly in the mid range, the company was not able to fully capitalize on positive market developments," it said.

Global mobile phone volume growth is estimated to have been in excess of 25 percent in the first quarter while Nokia volumes grew by 19 percent, it said.

"The overall Nokia sales were negatively impacted because we were not able to fully exploit the usual seasonal market pick up in March, and the Mobile Phones product mix was weighted towards the low end," said Nokia Chairman and CEO Jorma Ollila.



Ollila said the group's product portfolio should improve as new products are brought to market.

Richard Windsor, an analyst at Nomura Securities in London, said it's pretty clear that Samsung is the story behind the sales warning, as it is taking Nokia market share.

"They're strong in areas where Nokia is weak, with GSM feature phones and clamshells," he said.

Windsor also has doubts on whether Nokia, as Ollila promises, can recapture market share later in the year.

"They've misread the market for the first time in a long time," he said, adding that he has not seen any phones in the pipeline at Nokia that should reverse the trend.

Meanwhile, Nokia said that its Networks division exceeded expectations with a 16 percent rise in sales to 1.4 billion euros.

Steve Goldstein is a reporter for CBS MarketWatch.com in London.