First quarter highlights

• Sales adjusted for comparable units and currency grew by 10% YoY despite SEK -1.6 b. lower IPR licensing revenues YoY and four of the five market areas showed double-digit growth. Reported sales were SEK 49.8 (49.8) b.
• Gross margin excluding restructuring charges improved to 42.9% (40.4%) with margin improvements in all segments despite lower IPR licensing revenues. Reported gross margin improved to 42.8% (39.8%).
• EBIT excluding restructuring charges improved to SEK 5.3 b. (10.7%) from SEK 4.6 b. (9.3%) YoY driven by Networks, more than offsetting the negative impact from lower IPR licensing revenues. Reported EBIT was SEK 5.3 (4.3) b.
• Networks sales increased by 15% YoY, adjusted for comparable units and currency, driven by market share gains. Networks EBIT margin excluding restructuring charges was 19.9% (16.8%). 
• Reported net income was SEK 3.2 (2.3) b. 
• Free cash flow before M&A was SEK 1.6 (2.3) b. mainly impacted by lower incoming IPR payments. Net cash per March 31, 2021 was SEK 43.0 (38.4) b.

Comments from Börje Ekholm, President and CEO of Ericsson (NASDAQ:ERIC)

Our strategy, built on increased investments in R&D for technology and cost leadership, continued to bear fruit in the first quarter of 2021. We saw organic sales[1] growth of 10%, primarily driven by market share gains in Networks. Adjusting for declining IPR revenues, organic sales[1] growth was 14%. Gross margin[2] improved to 42.9% (40.4%) YoY and margin increases in all segments more than offset lower IPR licensing revenues. Our EBIT margin[2] increased to 10.7% despite significant investments in our business and headwind from currency. We are well positioned to take advantage of the continued market momentum with a competitive 5G product portfolio and cost structure.

Networks sales[1] grew organically by 15%, despite a decline in IPR licensing revenues. This growth is reflecting continued high activity levels in all market areas, except in the Middle East and Africa. We continued to grow market share in the quarter with strong order intake. The gross margin[2] for Q1 improved to 46.0% (44.6%). With proactive and continuous measures for supply chain resilience we have to date been able to manage the global semiconductors shortage situation without impact on our customer deliveries. Our increased R&D investments have accelerated product development, evidenced by our recently launched lightweight, energy-efficient Massive MIMO radios for 5G mid-band as well as the Cloud RAN portfolio. These are complementing our radio portfolio, giving customers more deployment options and are receiving good customer traction. We expect the overall market to develop favorably during 2021. We intend to continue to invest for market share gains as well as supply chain resilience during the rest of the year.

Digital Services shows good momentum in contract awards primarily in our cloud native 5G Core portfolio and continues to execute on the plan, visible in the gross margin[2] increase to 43.6% (40.1%). Growing topline for Digital Services is a key driver, and it is encouraging to see sales[1] growing 3% organically in the quarter, despite lower IPR licensing revenues as well as continued fall in the legacy portfolio. The EBIT loss in the quarter is a result of seasonally low sales, lower IPR licensing revenues and ongoing ramp-up in R&D investments. We will continue to invest in R&D for the new cloud native 5G Core portfolio and we will see initial deployment costs impacting 2021. However, we expect revenues from awarded 5G Core contracts to start late 2021 or early 2022. 2021 will be an investment year and a similar earnings level in Q2 as in Q1 is expected. We are confident that we are building a strong platform for Digital Services and the target to reach an EBIT margin[2] of 4%-7% in 2022 remains.

Managed Services delivered a gross margin[2] of 21.0% (20.6%) in the quarter. EBIT margin[2] decreased to 8.1% (11.4%), including a one percentage point one-time negative impact related to an exit from a non-core business. Going forward, we continue to focus on further improving the margin profile based on increased R&D investments in automation and AI.

We are encouraged to see Cradlepoint, reported in segment Emerging Business and Other, developing according to plan.

IPR licensing revenues amounted to SEK 0.8 (2.5) b. in the quarter. The decline is mainly related to expired contracts pending renewal and lower volumes with one licensee. For the largest contract under renewal, both legal and negotiation processes are continuing.

Free cash flow before M&A amounted to SEK 1.6 (2.3) b. in the quarter. Normally the majority of the annual IPR licensing fees are received in Q1. Excluding the IPR impact, the cash flow improved significantly YoY as a result of improved earnings and continued working capital discipline. We are well positioned with a resilient balance sheet and a solid competitive position based on our 5G portfolio giving us the opportunity to further grow the company both organically and through acquisitions.

The ongoing global pandemic has fast-forwarded the digitalization of societies, placing a significant economic and social premium on high-quality network connectivity. A resilient global digital infrastructure is critical. We see positive signs of governments and enterprises increasingly recognizing 5G as a preferred choice for connectivity with accelerating deployment.

We continue to reinforce our strong commitment to ethics and compliance. We are further increasing our investments to strengthen our capabilities, and at the same time deploying new or revised processes and internal controls. A vital cornerstone is establishing a durable ethical culture built on individual accountability for responsible business practices. The ongoing independent monitorship is providing valuable contributions to achieving our ambition.

There is strong momentum in the global 5G demand with lead markets moving forward at high pace, creating opportunities for us to grow our core business. To that end we continue to invest in further strengthening our portfolio and growing our global footprint. The Enterprise opportunity, on the back of 5G and IoT, offers another attractive growth area. With the investments we are making in our business in 2021, we are creating a strong platform for the long term with strengthened competitiveness in the core business as well as in Enterprise applications.

Our number one priority is the safety, health and well-being of our colleagues, customers and partners. Thanks to the resilience of our outstanding employees working under challenging conditions during the pandemic, we have been able to deliver to customers and manage our operations without disruption.

Stay healthy and well.

Börje Ekholm

President and CEO