Chip manufacturer Qualcomm has reported a 13% jump in revenue to $6.18bn, driven by strong mobile chip sales and patent licensing deals in China.
The company’s profit soared 51% during the fourth quarter of the fiscal year ending 25 September to $1.6bn, while profits rose 11% compared to the previous quarter.
Operating income increased by 58% to $1.8bn when compared to the corresponding quarter last year.
Qualcomm’s mobile chip shipment during the quarter increased 4% to 211 million, topping its own forecast of 203 million.
The company has also signed licensing agreements with Chinese smartphone manufacturers such as One Plus, Xiaomi, Oppo, Vivo and Huawei.
Altogether, Qualcomm has given patent licenses to 9 out of 10 Chinese phone manufacturers.
Qualcomm CEO Steve Mollenkopf said: “Our fiscal fourth quarter EPS was above the high end of our expectations, reflecting new license agreements in China and strong chipset shipments.
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“We are forecasting continued growth of global 3G/4G device shipments in calendar year 2017, led by growing demand in emerging regions.”
The San-Diego based company supplying chips to Android and Apple phones, recently signed a definitive agreement to acquire NXP Semiconductors for $39bn in all cash. Qualcomm will also assume NXP’s debt, which increases the deal’s value to $47bn.
The deal needs approval from about 9 regulatory agencies around the world and the deal is expected to be closed by 2017.
NXP is a non-memory semiconductor supplier for secure identification, automotive and digital networking industries. Following the acquisition, Qualcomm might actively participate in the development of connected and autonomously driven vehicles of the future.
The acquisition of NXP Semiconductor is expected to expand the reach of Qualcomm’s semiconductor portfolio which has been under increasing strain in the light of slowing smartphone sales and increasing competition from Chinese and Taiwanese rivals.
Mollenkopf added: “We are well positioned to extend our mobile technology leadership and footprint into attractive growth opportunities, accelerated by our recently announced agreement to acquire NXP.”
