Good News Watch: Research In Motion (BBRY)

In spite of the doubters, the good news for Research In Motion (NASDAQ: BBRY) seems to keep on rolling in after the official BlackBerry 10 launch.

Feb 8, 2013 6:12:11 AM PST | 1076 View(s) | No Comment(s) - Post a Comment Rating

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In spite of all of the negative naysayers, the good news for BlackBerry maker Research In Motion (NASDAQ: BBRY), or simply BlackBerry as the company will soon be known as, keeps on coming in after the BlackBerry 10 launch. Already, the BlackBerry 10 is looking like a solid smartphone that will appeal to business types who, most importantly, have money to spend on such devices. And while the jury is still out on whether it will appeal to mainstream customers or the younger crowd, its probably safe to say that Research In Motion is off of life support – for now. With that in mind, here is a quick round up of good news about the BlackBerry maker:

Analysts Report Hearing About Strong Sales. After “store checks” showed “solid demand” for for the new BlackBerry, Jefferies & Co.‘s Peter Misek reiterated his Buy rating on the stock and gave it a $19.50 price target. Apparently, Misek’s store checks found that half of the 50 stores contacted in Canada were sold out of the phone. Wells Fargo‘s Maynard Um also raised his rating from Market Perform and Outperform with a $19 to $20 valuation range. Um is modeling BlackBerry 10 sales of 1.5 million units in its first quarter and he expects a higher profit margin will lift the company’s gross margin.
Is the BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES) a Secret Weapon? Jefferies & Co.’s Misek is actually more interested in the new BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES) that was rolled out last month because it promises to manage multiple devices like the Apple‘s (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPhone or those running Google‘s (NASDAQ: GOOG) Android software. He believes 1,600 out of BlackBerry’s estimated 10,000 enterprise installed base were trialing the new server software before the formal download was made available about two week ago and since then, he believes hundreds of additional enterprises have downloaded the server software with 20% of the Fortune 500 being in trials.
Lots of New BlackBerry Apps. At the BlackBerry launch, Research In Motion reported that at least 70,000 applications have been built for the new platform and are ready to use. Granted, that’s less than one tenth the number of apps built for Apple devices. Then again, just how many of those Apple apps are possibly needed or are actually getting used?
The Patent Portfolio Get Recognition. The Globe and Mail has reported how Research In Motion ranked in an elite group of companies for patents. Specifically, British trade publication Intellectual Asset Management ranked RIM among just 14 organizations holding at least 3,400 US patents who make new patent applications at a minimum annual rate of 13% and already hold a valuable IP portfolio. The Globe and Mail also pointed out that RIM spends $1.5-billion to $2-billion a year on R&d – making Canada’s top R&D spender.
The Share Price is Up, Way Up. Since the start of the year, Research In Motion is up 42.9% plus its up 30.2% since the start of this week and its set to move even higher today.

Finally, its worth considering that the vultures and hyenas appear to be circling Apple. Its not like the Apple or the iPhone is on life support but clearly the company got too big for its breaches and its time for it to be cut down to size – another development that will likely benefit Research In Motion and the BlackBerry over at least the short and medium term.

John Udovich is a paid contributor of the SmallCap Network. John Udovich's personal holdings should be disclosed above. You can also view SmallCap Network's complete disclaimer and disclosure.