Flextronics swings to 3Q profit from loss

posted: 13 DAYS 5 HOURS AGO

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LOS ANGELES -Flextronics International Ltd. said Wednesday that posted a profit in its fiscal third quarter as the Singapore-based contract electronics manufacturer slashed its debt and improved its margins.

The company earned $92.9 million, or 11 cents a share, in the three months ended Dec. 31. That compares with a loss of $6.02 billion, or $7.43 a share, a year earlier. Flextronics booked a $5.9 billion charge during the year-ago quarter to write-off the entire carrying value of its goodwill.

Net sales tumbled 20 percent to $6.6 billion from $8.15 billion in the third quarter of 2008.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters forecast a profit of 15 cents a share on $6.29 billion in sales.

During the quarter, the company cut net debt by $278 million to $309 million. In all, Flextronics has slashed $1 billion in debt over the past 12 months.

For the fiscal fourth quarter ending March 31, the company forecasts revenue will range between $5.8 billion and $6.2 billion. It also expects earnings will range between 13 cents and 16 cents a share.

Analysts are expecting profit excluding items of 13 cents a share and revenue of $5.85 billion, on average.

Shares of Flextronics fell 4.7 percent in aftermarket trading. The stock closed earlier up 53 cents, or 8 percent, to $7.10 in the regular session before the company released its results.

2010-01-27 20:25:50