Samsung Electronics expects sales of its flagship Galaxy S III smartphone to surpass 10 million units by July. If its projections are correct, the company could report record earnings for its mobile division, according to a senior Samsung executive.
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Samsung's Galaxy S III |
The company made the announcement as several brokerage firms cut their second-quarter earnings estimates for Samsung amid concerns about component supply issues, and as Samsung's shares tumbled to their lowest level in four months, wiping $6.4 billion in its market capitalization. However, the company projected a strong outlook for the quarter.
"The overall market condition was challenging due to euro zone issues and tight supply of components...but (our) second-quarter results will be better than the first quarter," J.K. Shin, head of Samsung's mobile division, told reporters, according to Reuters.
Shin also predicted the Galaxy S III will hit 10 million unit sales by July. However, he did not indicate by how much Samsung would exceed its first-quarter mobile profit, which was around $3.7 billion.
Analysts have been worried that tight supplies of Samsung's products could crimp sales. AT&T Mobility (NYSE:T), Sprint Nextel (NYSE:S) and T-Mobile USA have had to delay sales of the Galaxy S III due to supply issues.
"We're getting far better reviews on S III than we did with its predecessors globally...and supply simply can't meet soaring demand," Shin said. "We've sent executives and staff to almost all our (component) suppliers to ensure a smooth offering and hopefully things will get better from next week."
For more:
- see this Reuters article
- see this Bloomberg article
- see this WSJ article (sub. req.)
- see this AP article
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