These fallen stars are still worth holding

Article Excerpt

These two former stock market darlings from the 1990s continue to shrink their operations as they focus on their more-promising businesses. That puts them in a better position to survive COVID-19 disruptions. Still, investors will need to be patient: their short-term prospects remain weak. BLACKBERRY LTD. $6.47 is still a hold. The company (Toronto symbol BB; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares o/s: 555.8 million; Market cap: $3.6 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 3.6; No dividend paid; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative; www.blackberry.com) quit developing smartphones in 2016 to concentrate on its more-promising security software. It is now focused on adding value for investors by producing security software for mobile phones and self-driving cars. As part of that strategy, in February 2019, the company paid $1.4 billion in cash and shares (all amounts except share price and market cap in U.S. dollars) for Cylance Inc. Based in California, that firm makes anti-virus software using artificial intelligence to detect and prevent potential cyberattacks on computer networks. However, Cylance has…