Daegu, South Korea (BBN)-Electronics giant Samsung has estimated its third quarter operating profit will be 7.3t won ($6.29bn; £4.13bn) – up 79.8 per cent from a year earlier.
The guidance numbers for the three months to September beat expectations for a profit forecast of about 6.8t won and are up from 4.1tn won a year ago, reports BBC.
The numbers would mark the South Korean firm’s first quarterly profit growth in two years.
The company’s full results will be released later this month.
The electronic giant’s shares opened up in South Korean trade by more than 4 per cent on the news.
Samsung has recently been facing stiff competition for its top-end smartphones made by its main rival, Apple.
While its bottom-end smartphones have been struggling against Chinese smartphone makers such as Xiaomi.
Analysts have said the firm’s positive third quarter guidance numbers released on Wednesday were surprising and probably reflected stronger smartphone earnings from a year earlier – particularly thanks to the launch of the firm’s Galaxy Note 5 in August.
‘Surprising news’
“[Samsung’s] products are selling better than expected,” Frost & Sullivan’s Andrew Milroy told the BBC.
“It is holding its own in the smartphone and tablet markets with some strong new models like the S6 Edge and the Note 5.
“It is also doing well in other consumer electronics markets and the semiconductor market,” he added.
A weaker won has also made the firm’s products cheaper to buy overseas and helps boost its bottom line when it repatriates its earnings.
Samsung’s earnings guidance release does not include a breakdown of results in its various divisions and does not provide a net income number. Its fully audited results are due out later this month.
BBN/SK/AD