After dancing briefly with profit, Nokia sees $196M loss, 5.6M Lumias sold

Nokia’s brief flirtation with profit last quarter (following six quarters of losses) was bound to end — we just didn’t think it would be this soon.

The Finnish company posted an operating loss of €150 million (PDF), or around $196 million, today on around $7.65 billion in revenue. But aside from that brief setback, things are actually looking pretty good for Nokia, with record-high sales of its flagship Lumia smartphone line (5.6 million) and a rise in cash and liquid assets (up to $5.85 billion from $5.69 billion).

Sales of Nokia’s Lumia phone, which is also Microsoft’s flagship Windows Phone, rose 27 percent from the last quarter to reach a new record high. It’s a good sign for growth from last quarter’s 4.4 million Lumia sales. Outside of the Lumia, Nokia’s mobile phone sales fell 31 percent from last quarter, while “Smart Devices” sales fell 32 percent (that includes the company’s other smartphones, which nobody wants).

In North America, Nokia shipped 400,000 devices, compared to 700,000 devices last quarter. That’s even after Nokia spent considerable effort building up its presence in the U.S. over the past few years. Carriers are clearly more aware of Nokia’s devices (before they didn’t even offer them on contract), but the real target for Nokia is the elusive American consumer.

During the company’s earnings call today, Nokia CEO Stephen Elop (above), hinted the company would be launching a new Lumia device later quarter on a U.S. carrier. Judging from the rumors we’ve heard so far, he’s likely referring to the Lumia “Catwalk,” which is expected to have a metal case and serve as Verizon’s flagship Windows Phone.

Photo:  Devindra Hardawar/VentureBeat