Nortel Networks posts 4th-quarter net income of $1.8 billion, boosted by sale of business

Nortel Networks posts profit in 4Q

TORONTO — Bankrupt telecom equipment maker Nortel Networks Corp. said Friday it posted a profit in the fourth quarter, thanks to a large gain related to an asset sale.

For the three months ended Dec. 31, Nortel said its net income was $1.78 billion, or $3.34 per share. The company recorded a gain of $1.3 billion from its sale of its CDMA business in the quarter.

In the prior-year period the loss amounted to $2.14 billion, or $4.28 per share.

Revenue in the fourth quarter plunged 62 percent to $794 million from $2.07 billion in the 2008 quarter.

Nortel filed for bankruptcy protection in January 2009, saying the economic crisis compounded its existing financial troubles, making a turnaround impossible. The company has been selling its operations piece by piece for the past year.

For 2009, Nortel earned $488 million, or 96 cents per share, reversing a year-earlier loss of $5.8 billion, or $11.64 per share. Revenue slid to $4.09 billion from $7.62 billion.