Nokia announced financial results for 2020Q2 and the first half earlier today.  Results were not nearly as bad as expected.

True, Net sales were down 11% to €5.92 billion.  But with cost controls, including continued consolidation from the 2016 Alcatel-Lucent purchase, diluted EPS were still up 20% to €0.06/share.

Nokia said that 2020Q2 net sales were impacted by COVID-19 and unique dynamics in China.  Sales plummeted 41% in China, to just €302 million.

In Q2 2020, Nokia estimates that COVID-19 had an approximately EUR 300 million negative net impact on net sales; with the majority of these net sales expected to be shifted to future periods, rather than being lost.

Rajeev Suri, the outgoing President and CEO, “Nokia delivered a strong improvement in Q2, with better-than-expected profitability, significant improvement in cash generation, clear indications of a return to strength in mobile radio, and a year-on-year increase in earnings-per-share, despite the challenges of COVID-19.”

Investors were pleasantly surprised.  Shares on the Helsinki market leaped 12.54% today.

For more details on the announcement, refer to https://www.nokia.com/about-us/news/releases/2020/07/31/nokia-corporation-financial-report-for-q2-and-half-year-2020/

TruePulse buys and sells telecom equipment from a wide range of manufacturers including Nokia (Alcatel-Lucent), Tellabs, Fujikura and Fujitsu.