Thai TAC Q4 net profit up, but misses forecasts

BANGKOK, Feb 11 (Reuters) - Total Access Communication PCL DTAC.BK (TACC.SI: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), Thailand's second-biggest mobile phone operator, said on Monday its fourth-quarter net profit rose a less-than-expected 21.6 percent.

TAC reported a net profit of 1.59 billion baht ($48.23 million), up from 1.31 billion baht a year earlier and 1.36 billion baht in the previous quarter.

The foiurth quarter fell short of the 1.95 billion baht forecast by 12 analysts surveyed by Reuters Estimates.

For the whole 2007, the company reported a net profit of 5.84 billion baht, up 18.3 percent from 2006, and said it would pay a dividend of 0.73 baht per share.

In the fouth quarter of 2007, DTAC added another 893,961 subscribers as a result of continuous expansion of its network coverage and distribution channels in rural areas, it said in a statement.

TAC shares fell 0.5 percent at 45.75 baht in Bangkok on Friday, when the main index .SETI rose 1.67 percent.

In Singapore, the stock was down 1.63 percent at $1.21, at 0240 GMT on Monday. ($1 = 32.91 Baht) (Reporting by Viparat Jantraprap; Editing by Michael Battye)