London Time: Smart watches, we’re afraid to report, are here to stay February 6, 2014 YOU know how rude it seems when someone checks their wristwatch during a conversation? Well, things are about to get a lot ruder, thanks to 2014 being the year of the smartwatch. Just as the pocket watch proved itself useful enough to migrate to our wrists over the course of the 1930s, we are now [...]
Wolfson stung by changes in mobile market February 5, 2014 AUDIO semiconductor company Wolfson Microelectronics saw its shares plunge as much as 15 per cent yesterday morning, after it reported a loss during the quarter with dwindling revenues and gross margins. Cancellations from one of the Blackberry and Samsung supplier’s major customers have led to increasingly difficult trading for Wolfson over the last year. The [...]
Wolfson shares fall 15pc on $20m loss February 5, 2014 Audio semiconductor company Wolfson Microelectronics has seen its shares plunge 15 per cent this morning, after it reported revenues and gross margins dwindled in the fourth quarter as it turned a loss. The Edinburgh firm said revenue was hit by a "very volatile" phone market and faster-than-expected transition to 4G smartphones "benefitting a competitor". Revenue [...]
Chip king ARM hurt by phone sales slowdown February 4, 2014 BRITISH chip designer ARM said a slowdown in demand for Apple and Samsung smartphones was behind a smaller than expected rise in fourth-quarter royalty revenues. ARM, whose technology is in nearly every smartphone, reported processor royalties of £80.8m, up seven per cent, but shy of analyst forecasts of £84.5m. Shares in ARM closed down six [...]
Here’s how Microsoft’s new CEO pick signals a change in direction February 4, 2014 Microsoft’s new chief executive Satya Nadella comes from an entirely different background to the executives who led Microsoft previously. Steve Ballmer, who Nadella replaces, comes from a sales background having worked in the company’s Sales and Support division from 1992 to 1998 where he made his name as a prominent salesperson and evangelist of the [...]
Microsoft’s next CEO has 4 huge challenges to face February 4, 2014 As rumours surrounding Microsoft’s next chief executive continue to swirl, we take a look at the four big challenges they're set to face. 1. Mobile Microsoft’s success in mobile with Windows Phone has been mixed, on the one hand its share of sales in Europe is hovering around ten per cent, and on the other [...]
Best of the Brokers for 31 January 2014 January 30, 2014 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com CARPHONE WAREHOUSE Barclays keeps its “equalweight” rating and raises its target from 270p to 290p following the firm’s plan to open stores in collaboration with Samsung. The broker hopes Carphone will do further deals in the same vein across Europe. PUMA UBS has [...]
Ericsson results miss expectations as North America fails to deliver January 30, 2014 Swedish communications giant Ericsson has performed below analysts expectations posting a fall in sales and fourth quarter operating profit. Sales in networks also declined by one per cent in the quarter from the same period a year earlier. Sales at Ericsson were 67bn krona (£6.2bn) against a forecast of 69.3bn krona. Ericsson's earnings before interest [...]
Google sells off Motorola unit to Lenovo for $3bn January 29, 2014 LENOVO Group said last night it agreed to buy Google’s Motorola handset division for $2.91bn, less than two years after Google paid $12.5bn to buy the firm. The deal ends Google’s short-lived foray into making consumer mobile devices and marks a pullback from its largest-ever acquisition. However, Google will keep several lucrative patents, including the [...]
Carphone set to run 60 Samsung stores in Europe January 29, 2014 SAMSUNG and Carphone Warehouse have signed an agreement for the high street retailer to convert 60 of its stores across Europe into dedicated Samsung stand-alone stores. Carphone Warehouse was one of the top risers on the London Stock Exchange yesterday on the news with shares rising 6.69 per cent to close at 287.2p a share. [...]