LG Electronics Inc.’s share price up, posts a first-quarter profit that beats analysts’ estimates due to increased demand for large-screen TV sets

The second-largest television manufacturer in the world – LG Electronics Inc. announced its results for the first quarter of the current financial year in an official statement today. The company posted operating profit for the first three months of 2014 that almost doubled analysts forecasts, due to increasing demand for large-screen television sets with high-resolution screens.

One of the analysts, who work for Daewoo Securities Co. – Mr. William Park commented on the companys results: “The TV business led its first-quarter earnings. Profits from TVs will remain strong well into the second quarter with Korean companies likely outperform their rivals.”

LG Electronics Inc. posted an operating profit estimated to 504 billion won (489 million dollars), which is a 44.2% surge in comparison to analysts estimates of 285.4 billion won. The company also revealed that its net income, excluding minority interests, increased from 24.2 billion won for the same period in 2013 to 74.9 billion won over the first quarter of 2014, which ended on March 31st. LG Electronics Inc.s margins were reported to have increased by 4.9% compared to the 0.2% increase posted a year earlier.

Despite the better-tahn-expected results, the mobile unit of the company, which is responsible for generating about one-fourth of LGs overall revenue, posted a loss compared to its results in 2013. LG Electronics mobile unit posted a 8.8-billion-won first-quarter operating loss in comparison to the 132.5-billion-won operating profit announced for the same period in 2013.

LG Electronics also revealed in its statement that it considers launching a new flagship phone. The new device is expected to be revealed in the second quarter of the current financial year and will be named LG G3. The company has been currently focused on attracting more customers to its L Series III smartphones, which are cheaper.

LG Electronics Inc. added 3.91% to close at 71,700 South Korean won per share, marking a one-year change of -18.98%. According to the information published on the Financial Times, the 36 analysts offering 12 month price targets for LG Electronics Inc. have a median target of 84,000, with a high estimate of 110,000 and a low estimate of 50,000. The median estimate represents a 21.74% increase from the last price of 69,000.