Ericsson Shrs Slide On Weak Q3 Results

Ericsson (ERIC) continues to struggle for firm footing amid a weak market for telecom equipment.

The Swedish telecom equipment supplier’s shares are taking a hit this morning on very weak Q3 results. Sales of 46.4 billion Swedish krona - about $6.74 billion dollars - were down 6% year-over year, off 11% from the second quarter, and below the Street consensus at $7.1 billion. Net income fell 74% year over year. Sales on a “comparable unit” basis were down 4%; but on a currency adjusted basis fell 12%.

CEO Carl-Henric Svanberg said in a statement that “sales of network equipment declined due to lower demand in the current tougher market environment.” He also said cost reduction activities are running ahead of plan with “further opportunities for efficiency improvements and savings,” which suggests maybe Ericsson employees might want to brush up their resumes.

Svanberg said that the economic climate continues to affect the global mobile infrastructure market, and that the credit environment remains tight in several emerging markets, but that “the world’s leading economies,” including China, India, the U.S. and Japan “show good development.”

ERIC today is down 73 cents, or 6.8%, to $10.01.