Saudi's No 2 telecom company, Etihad Etisalat (Mobily), said on Saturday its third-quarter net profit jumped 23 per cent to 1.51 billion riyals ($403 million) over the same period of 2011, beating analyst forecasts.

The firm, an affiliate of UAE's Etisalat , attributed its performance to higher revenue from its data and business units.

Analysts polled by Reuters on average had forecast Mobily - which competes with the Gulf's No.1 operator Saudi Telecom Co and Zain Saudi, part-owned by Kuwait's Zain - would make a quarterly profit of 1.44 billion riyals. – Reuters