You don't call, you don't text: SIM-flinger Gemalto warns of 9% sales drop

Security software-maker Gemalto has once again issued a trading update, warning its second quarter revenue will fall 9 per cent to €742m (£663m) compared with the same period in 2016.

The company said its profit from operations are in line with expectations at approximately €93m (£83m).

However, due to a lacklustre SIM market, the company is expected to book a non-cash goodwill impairment charge of approximately €420m in the first semester of 2017.

"Looking ahead, the second quarter double digit decline for Payment in Americas and SIM business is anticipated to continue for the rest of the year," it said.

The firm has several contactless payment solutions in the eBanking and transport areas as well as secure access smart cards and products in the e-identification markets.

The company said the decline will be offset by the expected revenue acceleration in enterprise, machine-to-machine and government programmes, leading to a stable revenue year-on-year for the second semester.

Gemalto estimates its 2017 second semester profit from operations to be between €200m and €230m.

Gemalto is the world's biggest supplier of SIM cards. It also offers smart cards and tokens, and managed services.

Last quarter the firm also reported sales would be up to 9 per cent lower than the previous quarter, blaming weak sales in its US payment business for the revenue shortfall.

The firm will publish its half-year results in September. ®