LM Ericsson Telephone Company (ERIC) reported earnings per share of 16 cents for the third quarter of 2009, exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 12 cents per share. Net sales in the third quarter were SEK 46.4 billion ($6.6 billion). Sales in the quarter decreased 4% year-over-year for comparable units, i.e. excluding Ericsson Mobile Platforms, and decreased 12% adjusted for currency exchange rate effects and hedging. The third quarter last year was comparatively strong with no normal seasonality. Sequential sales decreased 11%, negatively impacted by currency exchange rate effects, seasonality and a reduced scope of the renewed managed services agreement in Italy. Network sales in the third quarter declined year-over-year by 8%. Even though the comparison is tough with last year's strong third quarter, the market was weaker. The markets are fairly strong in the world's leading economies, while demand is weaker in several emerging ...

Alcatel-Lucent (ALU) announced that it has reached a crucial milestone in the development of its next-generation wireless broadband solution following validity certification from the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The company became the first vendor to have FCC-certified next-generation base stations available, a key requirement for selling in the U.S. market. To meet the needs of service providers in the U.S., Alcatel-Lucent has developed a high-performance compact base station designed to help operators launch services quickly to take advantage of their recent investments in digital spectrum bands. Alcatel-Lucent’s solution complies with the latest 3GPP standards and incorporates innovations from Alcatel-Lucent Bell Labs such as Self-Organizing and Self-Optimizing (SON) capabilities that enable seamless introduction of services and ensure optimization of resources. Based in Paris, Alcatel-Lucent is a diversified global manufacturer of telecom equipment with over 77,000 employees in 130 countries worldwide. Alcatel-Lucent leverages the technical and scientific ...

LM Ericsson Telephone Company (ERIC) reported higher-than-expected revenues for the second quarter of 2009 although earnings were impacted by losses at its subsidiaries. Total revenue for the quarter was SEK 52.1 billion ($6.57 billion) while net income was SEK 0.26 per share ($0.03 per ADR). Comparable sales for the quarter increased 11% year over year driven by networks, where WCDMA exhibited strong growth, reflecting robust demand for broadband services. Professional services sales increased 28% year over year with managed services and systems integration leading the pack. Multimedia sales increased by 23% for comparable units, driven by revenue management and multimedia brokerage solutions.  Sales in Western Europe grew 4% year over year while that in Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa increased by 12% year over year. Asia-Pacific sales increased 10% year over year.  Operating margin excluding joint ventures, restructuring charges and capital gains improved ...