The Successful Investor Hotline – Friday, September 16, 2011

Article Excerpt

RESEARCH IN MOTION LTD., $23.50, Toronto symbol RIM, reported lower than-expected revenue and earnings, mainly because demand for the company’s older BlackBerry smartphones has slowed as it launches newer models. That caused the stock to fall 20% on Friday. In RIM’s second quarter, which ended August 27, 2011, revenue fell 9.8%, to $4.2 billion from $4.6 billion a year earlier (all amounts except share price in U.S. dollars). That fell short of the consensus revenue estimate of $4.5 billion. Earnings fell 58.7%, to $329 million, or $0.63 a share, from $797 million, or $1.46 a share. The company is cutting roughly 10% of its workforce as it streamlines its operations. If you exclude severance payments and related costs, RIM would have earned $419 million, or $0.80 a share, in the latest quarter. On this basis, the latest earnings missed the consensus estimate of $0.89 a share. RIM shipped 10.6 million BlackBerry smartphones during the quarter, down 12.4% from 12.1 million…