Nokia says revenue and margins to rise as turnaround gathers pace

HELSINKI :Finnish telecoms equipment maker Nokia said on Thursday it expects its revenue to grow this year and set a higher target for long-term earnings margins as the company's recovery gathers pace after years of restructuring.

Nokia predicted its 2022 revenue will amount to between 22.6 billion euros and 23.8 billion euros ($25.5 billion-$26.9 billion), up from 22.2 billion last year. Analysts on average expected revenue of 23.06 billion, a Refinitiv poll showed.

"Our long-term target is to grow faster than the market and to achieve a comparable operating margin of at least 14per cent," Chief Executive Pekka Lundmark said in a statement.

The producer of 5G technology and other network gear proposed a dividend of 0.08 euro per share for the 2021 financial year, the first owners will receive since a quarterly payout in mid-2019.

Nokia will also start a share buyback scheme with an aim to return 600 million euros of cash to shareholders over a period of two years.