Following a somewhat lackluster quarter from rival Samsung, it looks as though Motorola will regain its spot as the No. 2 global handset manufacturer. The company posted strong fourth-quarter results, but a cautious first-quarter outlook dragged down its stock.

For the recently ended fourth quarter, Motorola posted net income of $654 million, or 27 cents a share, which is a 27 percent increase over the $489 million, or 20 cents a share, it recorded in the comparable year-ago period. Revenue also was up year-over-year to $8.84 billion, which surpassed analysts' on average expectations of $8.46 billion.

Thanks to 20 new handset introductions during the quarter, Motorola increased its quarterly shipments by 42 percent over the previous year to 31.8 million. The wireless handset division posted operating earnings of $526 million on sales of $4.9 billion, the company said.

Motorola estimates its share of the wireless market is now 16.6 percent, compared to 13.4 percent in the previous quarter, when Samsung usurped its spot as the No. 2 wireless handset manufacturer. "The market share resurgence of the Personal Communications Segment in the fourth quarter strengthened Motorola's number two position in the wireless handset industry," Motorola CEO Ed Zander said in a statement.

Looking ahead, Motorola predicts first-quarter sales will ring in at $7.5 billion to $7.9 billion. Its earnings per share (EPS) forecast came in below analysts' forecasts at between 17 cents and 20 cents. Analysts' on average were calling for EPS of 20 cents

At one point in noon hour trading, Motorola shares slipped $1.26, or 7.2 percent, to $16.17 on volume of 29.5 million shares - average daily volume is 15.9 million shares.