Research In Motion Ltd (RIM), the maker of the BlackBerry, on Thursday cut its earnings and sales forecasts for the current quarter, saying it is selling fewer and cheaper phones than it had expected.
RIM co-CEO Jim Balsillie blamed the shortfall on delays in launching new high-end BlackBerrys, saying the company is in “transition” to a new generation of phones.
“We’re cutting over to a whole new platform, a whole new set of products,” he told analysts on a conference call. “We feel very, very excited and committed to the long-term strategic strength of the company. We do not feel that that is in question.”
Investors were skeptical, sending the stock down US$6.16, or 11 percent, to US$50.43 in extended trading.
It was the second hit for the stock in just over a month. When reporting earnings for its fiscal fourth quarter on March 24, the Waterloo, Ontario, company said it expects earnings of US$1.47 to US$1.55 per share for the current quarter, below analyst expectations at the time.
On Thursday, it lowered that range to US$1.30 to US$1.37 per share. It also said the number of BlackBerrys shipped will be toward the lower end of the previously forecast range of 13.5 million to 14.5 million. .
It expects revenue to come in below the US$5.2 billion to US$5.6 billion range it had given on March 24. It reports first-quarter results in June.
RIM still expects a comeback in the second half of its fiscal year, thanks to new phones and “cost management.” It’s sticking to its full-year earnings forecast of US$7.50 per share.
Analysts had taken RIM at its word, and set their fiscal first-quarter expectations in the middle of the company’s ranges. However, they have been more cautious about full-year earnings, projecting earnings of US$6.86 per share as surveyed by FactSet, well below the company’s forecast.
RIM said shipments of the PlayBook, its first tablet, are in line with expectations. The tablet went on sale recently, to mixed reviews.
Balsillie promised the company would show “very powerful stuff” at next week’s BlackBerry World conference in Orlando, Florida, which presumably will include a software update. It’s not clear if RIM will go as far as demonstrating new phone software based on the radically different operating system of the PlayBook.
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