LG Electronics became the world’s third largest smartphone vendor for the first time since it began to sell the devices back in 2009, the Seoul-based company said on Friday, citing research data from Strategy Analytics.

LG shipped a total of 10.3 million smartphones in the first quarter, which was more than double the 4.9 million units it recorded a year earlier, with its market share standing at 4.9 percent, the data showed.

“LG was a star performer as its global shipments doubled year-over-year to 10.3 million units and it became the world’s third largest smartphone vendor for the first time ever in the first quarter of 2013,” said Linda Sui, an analyst at Strategy Analytics. “An improved Optimus portfolio and expanded distribution have been the main cause of LG’s success.”

The results added to LG’s recent pleasure of having recorded a dramatic turnaround in its mobile business for the first quarter.

The company attributed the performance to robust sales of LTE smartphones such as the Optimus G and Optimus G Pro along with 3G smartphones including the Optimus L Series and Nexus 4.

Meanwhile, the data showed that Apple Inc. of the U.S. was stuck in between the Korean makers; Samsung Electronics was head of the pack with a global smartphone market share of 33.1 percent stake, followed by Apple with 17.9 percent and LG with 4.9 percent. Huawei of China was closed behind with 4.8 percent.

By Kim Ji-hyun  (jemmie@heraldcorp.com)