HONG KONG (Reuters) - Lenovo Group Ltd <0992.HK>, the world's No.2 PC maker, posted a 54 percent rise in third-quarter net profit, beating expectations, though growth slowed for a third straight quarter on weak global PC demand and a shortage of components.
Lenovo, which last year edged out Dell Inc to rank behind market leader Hewlett Packard Co in PC sales, reported a net profit of $153.46 million for the three months ended December, up from $99.65 million a year earlier.
That compared with a consensus forecast of $130.2 million from a poll by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Lenovo has been growing strongly in recent years, propelled by expanding sales in China and acquisitions in mature markets, although weak demand in crisis-striken Europe and hard disk drive supply disruptions stemming from flooding in Thailand last year may crimp growth.
The company has been diversifying into smartphones and tablet PCs with its LePhone and LePad devices, although its market share still lags that of major players such as Apple Inc
