UPDATE 1-Activist Cevian Capital trims Ericsson stake below 5%

Adds detail, Cevian comment

STOCKHOLM, March 17 (Reuters) - Cevian Capital has cut its holding in Ericsson ERICb.ST to 4.55% of the telecom equipment maker's share capital, the activist investor said on Wednesday.

Cevian, one of Ericsson's biggest owners, said it had freed up capital for a new investment, adding the telecom blue chip would continue to be one of its largest investments.

"The 5G market continues to grow rapidly and Ericsson is gaining market share, both from Huawei and Nokia," Cevian managing partner Christer Gardell said in an e-mail, adding he expected Ericsson to "continue to exceed market expectations".

"We still believe that today's valuation is far too low," he said. Cevian last autumn cut its stake in Ericsson to 5.45%. nL8N2FZ1J4

Ericsson shares were down 2.2% at 1215 GMT.

The Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority (FSA) said earlier on Wednesday that Cevian had cut its stake to 4.8% on March 11, to 160.2 million shares.

(Reporting by Helena Soderpalm; editing by Niklas Pollard)

((helena.soderpalm@thomsonreuters.com; +46 8 700 10 15; Reuters Messaging: helena.soderpalm.reuters.com@reuters.net))