Motorola Forecasts Loss on Struggling Phone Biz.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Motorola Inc said on Wednesday it will post an operating loss in the current quarter as recovery in its cell phone business is taking longer than expected, dashing Wall Street expectations for a profit and sending its shares down as much as 14 percent.

The miss of as much as 16 cents per share for Motorola's first quarter outlook overshadowed its fourth quarter results, which were in line with expectations.

"The figures had us scratching our heads checking the date to see if we were looking at an earnings release from 2002," JPMorgan analyst Ehud Gelblum said in a note to clients.

Motorola's outlook suggested the company "either expects massive additional (market) share loss in the first quarter or even weaker margins across the board," he said.

Shares fell to $10.55 in pre-market trading, after falling 7 percent to $12.32 on Tuesday. If the stock stays at that level after trade opens on the New York Stock Exchange, it would be its lowest since October 2003.

The company forecast a first quarter loss per share from continuing operations of 5 cents to 7 cents, before any reorganization charges. Analysts had expected a profit of 9 cents per share, according to Reuters Estimates.

Avian Securities analyst Tero Kuittinen said the outlook reflected Motorola's lack of a strong enough product line to beat rivals, such as Nokia and Samsung Electronics to which Motorola has been losing market share.