Qualcomm reported net profit for the fiscal second quarter up 123 percent year-on-year to USD 2.23 billion, helped by a profit of USD 1.2 billion on the sale of its 700MHz band spectrum. Excluding one-time items, EPS rose 17 percent to USD 1.01. Revenues increased 28 percent year-over-year and 6 percent sequentially to USD 4.94 billion, and MSM chip shipments reached 125 million units in the three months to March, up 29 percent from a year ago and down 3 percent sequentially. Revenues were at the top of the company's earlier guidance, while MSM shipments fell slightly short of expectations. Operating profit improved 6 percent from a year earlier to USD 1.51 billion. After operating cash flow of USD 1.89 billion, Qualcomm finished the quarter with cash of USD 26.6 billion. The chipmaker said it will increase operating expenses going forward in order to facilitate more 28nm supply. It left its profit outlook for 2012 unchanged, but narrowed the range to the top end, at USD 3.41-3.56 per share. Revenues are still forecast at USD 18.7-19.7 billion for the fiscal year, while Qualcomm slightly raised its market forecast for calendar 2012 to 915 million 3G/4G devices shipped. For fiscal Q3, the company expects revenues up 23-34 percent year-on-year to USD 4.45-4.85 billion and EPS up 10-20 percent to USD 0.67-0.73.
