Consumer and healthcare electronics group Philips booked net profit of € 260m in the final quarter of last year, exceeding analysts expectations.

Sales were down by €300m at €7.3bn, also above forecasts. Turnover was boosted in particular by demand for healthcare products in developing markets.
‘Fantastic results. Tears in my eyes,’ ING analyst Jan Hein de Vroe was quoted as saying by news agency Reuters. ‘They beat expectations on all fronts.’
Last year, the company announced plans to cut costs by €600m this year, compared with 2008 and that process will continue, Philips said.
‘While today’s economic circumstances do not allow for a reliable prediction of future developments, I am confident that… 2010 will be a year of further progress,’ CEO Gerard Kleisterlee said in a statement.
Kleisterlee said the company is proposing a €0.70 per share dividend ‘as a sign of confidence in the future’.