Qualcomm Q3 Profit Down

(RTTNews) - Qualcomm Inc. (QCOM) Wednesday reported a profit for the third quarter that dropped from a year ago, as revenues declined 11 percent.

San Diego, California-based Qualcomm's third-quarter profit profit dropped to $866 million or $0.58 per share from $1.44 billion or $0.97 per share last year.

Adjusted earnings for the quarter dropped to $0.83 per share from $1.16 per share last year. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected earnings of $0.81 per share for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude one-time items.

Revenues for the quarter dropped 11 percent to $5.37 billion from $6.04 billion last year. Analysts had a consensus revenue estimate of $5.26 billion.

"We delivered better than expected results in our semiconductor business this quarter, which drove EPS above the midpoint of our expectations versus our April updated guidance," said Steve Mollenkopf, CEO of Qualcomm Incorporated.

During the last quarter report, Qualcomm had cut its profit forecast because the chip-maker said it did no longer expect any patent-licensing revenue from the iPhone in third quarter due to the ongoing legal battle with Apple.

According to reports, Apple royalties account for about 12% of Qualcomm's total revenue and as much as 30% of its per-share earnings.

Third-quarter revenues were impacted by Apple's contract manufacturers, who did not pay royalties due on sales of Apple products, as well as the previously disclosed dispute with another licensee, who did not report or pay royalties, the company said in a statement.

The company expects these licensees will continue to take such actions in the future until the respective disputes are resolved.

Moving ahead, the company expects fourth-quarter adjusted earnings of $0.75 to $0.85 and revenues of $5.4 billion to $6.2 billion. Analysts currently estimate earnings of $0.90 per share on revenues of $5.48 billion.

QCOM closed Wednesday's trading at $56.78, up $0.49 or 0.87%, on the Nasdaq. The stock, however, dropped $0.78 or 1.37% in the after-hours trading.