Philips swings to loss, to speed up restructuring

The company's first-quarter earnings before interest, taxes and amortization (EBITA) swung to a 74 million euro ($97.7 million) loss compared with an average analyst expectation of a 35 million profit in a Reuters poll of 20 analysts.

Individual analyst estimates ranged from a 33 million euros loss to a 155 million profit.

Last year, the company reported an EBITA profit of 265 million euros.

"Reductions of our fixed cost base has progressed well in the first quarter and is now expected to exceed 500 million euros on an annualized basis by the end of this year, with a further acceleration of restructuring in the second quarter, especially at Lighting," Philips' Chief Executive Gerard Kleisterlee said in a statement.

Philips was previously targeting about 400 million euros in annual savings.

But Chief Financial Officer Pierre-Jean Sivignon told reporters there are no plans to announce additional job cuts on top of the previously announced 6,000 for 2009. He declined to say whether he excluded extra job cuts.

DEMAND WEAKER THAN EXPECTED

EBITA, excluding 77 million euros in charges, also missed average analyst expectations of an 86 million euro profit in the poll, with estimates of 14 analysts ranging from an 11 million euro profit to a 156 million euro profit.

The world's biggest lighting maker, a hospital equipment maker and Europe's biggest consumer electronics producer, said demand for its products was weaker during the first quarter than anticipated.