Disappointing fiscal results for Nokia and Sony-Ericsson

Nokia announced its Q3 2009 results yesterday and Sony-Ericsson did so earlier today. Both companies had lacklustre results.

Nokia reported sales of €9.8 billion (about USD$14.6 billion), a 20 percent drop year over year. They also reported a loss of €426 million (about US$635), their first loss in over a decade. A year ago, Nokia had reported a profit of nearly €1.5 billion (about US$2.24 billion).

The Devices & Services group, responsible for mobile devices managed to remain profitable despite a 51 percent year over year drop. Mobile phone shipments reached 108.5 million, an 8 percent drop year over year. But smartphone shipments rose from 15.5 million to 16.4 million. N-series devices accounted for 4.5 million of those with the E-series close behind at 4.4 million.

Nokia estimates that it has a 38 percent market share, essentially maintaining status quo.

Sony Ericsson reported a loss of €164-million (about US$244 million) on sales of €1.6 billion (about US$2.38 billion). Sales were down 42 percent while shipments plunged 45 percent to 14.1 million devices compared to a year ago. ASP (Average Selling Price) was also down due to product mix and continued challenging market conditions.

On a more positive note, Sony Ericsson announced that it had secured about €455 million (about US$677 million) in external financing primarily from its two parent companies. It also expects to be “better positioned to support the launch of new products such as Aino and Satio.”

Sony Ericsson estimates that its unit market share was about 5 percent in the third quarter. It sounds more optimistic for the fourth quarter as it has completed its brand refresh.