Taiwanese phone maker HTC (2498TW) this morning cut its Q4 forecast, both Dow Jones and Bloomberg Newswire services report, saying it will make only about $104 billion in New Taiwan dollars, down from a previously forecast range of $125 billion to $135 billion.
The company blamed the results on “weaker global demand” and “intensifying competition.”
Bloomberg’s Tim Culpan this morning cites Yuanta Securities analyst Bonnie Chang as saying HTC’s “growth streak has come to an end.”
HTC shares traded on the Taipei exchange closed down roughly 6% at 565.
Update: In a note to clients this morning, BMO Capital’s Tim Long writes that the cut in outlook is “company-specific,” and that in his opinion, HTC is losing share to Apple (AAPL), which he rates Outperform.
Sprint-Nextel, Long thinks, had the potential to sell 2 million to 2.5 million HTC handsets this quarter, but the introduction of Apple’s iPhone 4S last month probably cut that number in half. HTC is also being affected in North America and elsewhere by the roll-out of Samsung Electronics’s (SSNLF) “Galaxy S II” smartphone.
Long thinks Qualcomm (QCOM), which he also rates Outperform, may be at risk to up to $750 million of CDMA chipset revenue from HTC’s lower view, though he thinks the company can make it up in sales at other vendors.
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