Nokia Profit Vanishes, Share Price Rises (NOK, AAPL, SSNLF, MSFT)

Telephone handset maker Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) posted a loss of -$1.4 billion early this morning as the company’s sales of smartphones has all but disappeared and operating margins have fallen to 3.4%. Compared with smartphone competitors like Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), Samsung Electronics (OTC: SSNLF), and HTC Corp., the Finnish company appears to be on the road to extinction.

Nokia’s does not expect to make any profit this year, which the company calls a year of transition. The company’s abandonment of its venerable Symbian operating system in favor of the Windows Phone operating system from Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) and the planned release of a Windows Phone-powered smartphone later this summer is the make-or-break moment for Nokia. Smartphones are where the money is, and Nokia absolutely must get a share of that market.