Research In Motion Q4 profit and sales more than double
Research In Motion Ltd. says its fiscal fourth-quarter profit and sales more than doubled as the BlackBerry maker beat expectations and shrugged off concerns that a slowdown in the U.S economy is hurting business.
By Agencies |
TORONTO: Research In Motion Ltd. says its fiscal fourth-quarter profit and sales more than doubled as the BlackBerry maker beat expectations and shrugged off concerns that a slowdown in the U.S economy is hurting business.
For the quarter ended March 1, the Canadian company earned $412.5 million (euro263.88 million), or 72 cents per share, up from a profit of $187.4 million, or 33 cents per share, in the same period a year earlier.
Revenue more than doubled to $1.88 billion (euro1.2 billion) from $930 million.
US-traded shares in RIM rose $7.35, or 6 percent, to $123.14. in after-hours trading Wednesday after closing at $115.79.
Analysts, on average, had expected a profit of 70 cents per share on sales of $1.86 billion (euro1.19 billion), according to a poll by Thomson Financial.
Waterloo, Ontario- based RIM has been targeting the consumer market after enjoying success in the corporate market for years. RIM's push e-mail software allows customers to access their e-mail on their wireless devices in real time.
"Heightened retail activities helped drive exceptional subscriber growth,'' co-CEO Jim Balsillie said in a release.
Research In Motion Ltd. says it added 2.2 million new subscriber accounts during the quarter, bringing its total to more than 14 million.
They shipped about 4.4 million of its smart phones. Peter Misek, an analyst with Canaccord Adams, called it a ``monster quarter'' and said RIM has benefited from Apple's introduction of the iPhone, which brought attention to the smart phone market.
"People are starting to realize, 'Why should I buy a Razr when I can buy a BlackBerry or an iPhone?' I think the iPhone was the single biggest blessing RIM ever had,'' Misek said.
Misek said sales of the BlackBerry are accelerating. ``It continues to take market share. They are the market leader,'' Misek said.
The company expects to add about 2.2 million subscriber accounts in the first quarter and said earnings per share for the first quarter are expected to be in the range of 82 to 86 cents per share _ higher than analysts expected.
Duncan Stewart, President of Duncan Stewart Asset Management, said it's astonishing that the a company the size of RIM has doubled revenue.
Stewart called the company recession proof. ``People may be spending less money on cars, they be spending less money on their houses, but it turns out the BlackBerry is the one essential,'' Stewart said.
For the quarter ended March 1, the Canadian company earned $412.5 million (euro263.88 million), or 72 cents per share, up from a profit of $187.4 million, or 33 cents per share, in the same period a year earlier.
Revenue more than doubled to $1.88 billion (euro1.2 billion) from $930 million.
US-traded shares in RIM rose $7.35, or 6 percent, to $123.14. in after-hours trading Wednesday after closing at $115.79.
Analysts, on average, had expected a profit of 70 cents per share on sales of $1.86 billion (euro1.19 billion), according to a poll by Thomson Financial.
Waterloo, Ontario- based RIM has been targeting the consumer market after enjoying success in the corporate market for years. RIM's push e-mail software allows customers to access their e-mail on their wireless devices in real time.
ADVERTISEMENT
"Heightened retail activities helped drive exceptional subscriber growth,'' co-CEO Jim Balsillie said in a release.
Research In Motion Ltd. says it added 2.2 million new subscriber accounts during the quarter, bringing its total to more than 14 million.
They shipped about 4.4 million of its smart phones. Peter Misek, an analyst with Canaccord Adams, called it a ``monster quarter'' and said RIM has benefited from Apple's introduction of the iPhone, which brought attention to the smart phone market.
"People are starting to realize, 'Why should I buy a Razr when I can buy a BlackBerry or an iPhone?' I think the iPhone was the single biggest blessing RIM ever had,'' Misek said.
ADVERTISEMENT
Misek said sales of the BlackBerry are accelerating. ``It continues to take market share. They are the market leader,'' Misek said.
The company expects to add about 2.2 million subscriber accounts in the first quarter and said earnings per share for the first quarter are expected to be in the range of 82 to 86 cents per share _ higher than analysts expected.
ADVERTISEMENT
Duncan Stewart, President of Duncan Stewart Asset Management, said it's astonishing that the a company the size of RIM has doubled revenue.
Stewart called the company recession proof. ``People may be spending less money on cars, they be spending less money on their houses, but it turns out the BlackBerry is the one essential,'' Stewart said.
Download
The Economic Times Business News App for the Latest News in Business, Sensex, Stock Market Updates & More.
The Economic Times Business News App for the Latest News in Business, Sensex, Stock Market Updates & More.
Download
The Economic Times News App for Quarterly Results, Latest News in ITR, Business, Share Market, Live Sensex News & More.
The Economic Times News App for Quarterly Results, Latest News in ITR, Business, Share Market, Live Sensex News & More.
ADVERTISEMENT
