Qualcomm raised its forecast for the third fiscal quarter Thursday, citing better-than-expected sales of wireless handsets that use the company's patented CDMA technology.

For the period ending June 29, Qualcomm said it now expects earnings to come in between 54 cents and 55 cents a share, above its prior estimate of 50 cents to 52 cents a share for the period. The forecast excludes expenses related to stock options and acquisition-related charges.

Wall Street analysts had been expecting 52 cents a share for the quarter, according to estimates from FactSet Research.

Revenue for the period is expected to be "slightly above the high end" of the company's previously forecast range of $2.5 billion to $2.7 billion, the company said. Analysts had been expecting revenue of about $2.7 billion for the period, according to FactSet.

Shares of Qualcomm rose 3% to $47.68 in trading shortly after Thursday's opening bell. The stock has risen about 25% over the last three months.

Qualcomm, which was a key developer of the CDMA technology used in many wireless networks around the globe, based its improved outlook on better-than-expected sales of CDMA devices. The company typically recognizes royalties from these devices on a delayed basis, so the forecast for the June quarter is based on CDMA sales for the period ended in March.

For that quarter, Qualcomm now estimates that about 107 million CDMA devices shipped at an average selling price of $226 per unit. Its previous forecasts called for a range of 105 million to 109 million devices shipped at an average selling price of $223.

Source:Dow Jones Newswires