Research In Motion Limited (USA) (NASDAQ:RIMM) (TSE:RIM) shares have continued their climb today, increasing another 2 percent ahead of the company’s quarterly earnings report, which is due at market close. Analysts at Baird Equity Research released their report to investors earlier today. They said they are maintaining their Underperform rating and $7 price target on shares of Research In Motion Limited (NASDAQ:RIMM) (TSE:RIM) in spite of the improving sentiment around the company.
Baird analysts said they see that investors have been responding positively to the upcoming launch of the BlackBerry 10, but they believe the company’s third quarter results will be weak and will “raise fresh concerns with regard to positioning.” They said the facts that Research In Motion Limited (NASDAQ:RIMM) (TSE:RIM) has lost share and is offering an unproven software platform are significant risks, as if the “uncertain future of services businesses.” Both Baird and Wall Street Analysts expect RIM to report 7.1 million BlackBerry shipments for a price of $220 each and $2.7 billion in revenue for the third quarter.
One of the biggest problems Baird analysts see is the competition Research In Motion Limited (NASDAQ:RIMM) (TSE:RIM) faces on both the high end of the market with the iPhone and the Galaxy S III and also in emerging markets where inexpensive Android handsets are selling well. Also they believe the true impact of the BlackBerry10 is still a quarter away because even though RIM plans to unveil the phone on January 30, we still don’t know when it will be up for sale. Baird doesn’t expect a “meaningful impact” for the BlackBerry 10 until the first quarter of 2014.
