Adjusted earnings before interest, tax and amortisation (EBITA) rose to 151 million euros ($173 million) in Osram's fiscal first quarter, it said on Wednesday, beating the average estimate of 127 million euros in a Reuters poll.
Restructuring costs of 184 million euros, mainly for job cuts in Europe, pushed Osram to a deeper-than-expected net loss of 39 million euros in the quarter.
Osram, the world's second-biggest light maker after Dutch Philips, is racing to stay ahead of Asian rivals such as Seoul Semi, Nichia or Epistar that specialise in more profitable LED lighting.
The German company reiterated it expected its 2014/15 revenue adjusted EBITA margin to be comparable with the previous year's, but net income would fall sharply due to further costs of restructuring, in which it has cut thousands of jobs.
New Chief Executive Olaf Berlien said in a statement that Osram would give a strategy update in spring.