Nokia Corporation

Nokia Corporation's (NOK - Analyst Report) stock has had a very nice three-month run, with prices accelerating from below $27 to over $40 per share. The company recently reported another great quarter that easily outpaced analyst projections, marking the fourth consecutive quarter that the company has surprised and beaten estimates.

Full Analysis

Nokia engages in the manufacture of mobile devices and mobile networks. It also provides equipment, solutions, and services for network operators, service providers, and corporations. Nokia sells its products to operators, distributors, independent retailers, and corporate customers. The company was founded in 1865 and is based in Espoo, Finland.

On Oct 18, Nokia reported a great quarter, with both revenue and profit registering a significant jump. The company's revenue grew 28% to $18.3 billion, while its earnings jumped by 85%, increasing to $2.2 billion.

The company said it benefited from strong sales in growing, high-volume markets like India and China and demand for multimedia phones.

Nokia's handset division showed an increase of 3% in revenue, with a global market share of 39% -- up from 36% in the same quarter in 2006 and near the company's long-stated goal of 40%.

Nokia also noted the average selling price of handsets declined during the period, though its mobile phone profit margin rose to more than 22% from 13% in the year-ago quarter. Mobile phone shipments jumped 26% to almost 112 million units.

Earnings for the most recent quarter were ahead of analyst projections by 10 cents, marking the fourth consecutive quarter that the company has outpaced estimates. During this period Nokia beat the street by an average of six cents, or 16.44%.

Nokia stock has had a very good year, bottoming out at less than $20, and recently logging a new 52-week high over $40.

Since establishing the new high, shares have retreated and traded lower. The good news is that they now appear to have found a comfortable level of support from which to rebound.

This support level at $37 has provided a solid base for the stock to build from. This level has successfully held prices for over two weeks, which now appear ready to break out of this short term channel between $37 and $40 and head higher.

A close above the channel, and significant follow-through trading should signal that the stock is once again ready to accelerate and mount a run at the 52-week high.

Read the full analyst report on NOK