Struggling Taiwanese smartphone giant HTC Corp reported on Tuesday its first quarterly revenue increase after three years of dwindling sales.
HTC posted revenue of NT$47.87 billion (HK$11.58 billion) in the quarter to December, up from NT$42.89 billion a year earlier. That was higher than the guidance of between NT$43 billion and NT$47 billion announced by the company on October 31.
Its net profit last quarter reached NT$470 million, which beat the NT$212 million average from analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Operating profit was NT$180 million, which trumped analysts’ estimates for a loss of NT$30.4 million.
Chiang Chia-Lin, HTC’s president of global sales and chief financial officer, said in October that the company would be competitive in the holiday promotions to bolster sales and help reach its guidance for the quarter.
HTC also was aggressive in promoting its new products. Despite stiff competition from Apple’s larger iPhone models and low-cost offerings from mainland brands like Xiaomi, HTC saw sustained momentum in most markets with its flagship HTC One and mid-range Desire line of smartphones.
The Desire 820, the world’s first 64-bit smartphone with an octa-core processor, was first released by HTC in October on the mainland, the world’s largest smartphone market. HTC said this model received wide distribution support from the country’s nationwide telecommunications operators.