Philips cheers strong demand from China as earnings treble
ELECTRONICS group Philips beat forecasts yesterday by more than trebling its quarterly net profits to €317m (£272m).
The Dutch firm said orders at its healthcare division – now its most profitable after a strategic overhaul – rose more than expected in the second quarter thanks to new ultrasound and scanning products and strong demand from China.
The group’s quarterly sales rose three per cent on a comparable basis to €5.65bn, with strong growth in emerging markets including China, Russia and Latin America.
Chief executive Frans van Houten stuck to the company’s full-year targets – sales growth between four and six per cent, a margin on Ebitda of 10 to 12 per cent and a return on invested capital of 12 to 14 per cent – and said he would update the market in September on the company’s new financial goals.
Shares in the firm closed up 2.1 per cent at €23.91 yesterday.