(Associated Press via NewEdge) BlackBerry maker Research In Motion (RIM) sent its stock surging by raising its forecast for fourth-quarter subscriber additions, saying its smartphones were hot sellers over the holidays.
The company said it expects quarterly net subscriber account additions to be 15% to 20% above the 1.82 million it forecast in December, implying 2.09 million to 2.18 million additional subscribers.
The BlackBerry subscriber account base is expected to be about 14 million at the end of the company's fiscal fourth quarter on March 1.
'BlackBerry smartphones proved to be a big hit throughout the holiday selling season and we're pleased to see RIM's business momentum continuing in the new year,' said co-chief executive Jim Balsillie.
Research in Motion shares climbed $8.78, or almost 9 %, to $106.69 in Nasdaq trading.
The company, which is casting its focus toward the consumer market after cornering the business community, reiterated that it expects quarterly earnings per share of $0.66 to $0.70 on revenue of $1.80 billion to $1.87 billion.
Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial expect profit of $0.69 per share on revenue of $1.85 billion.
Research In Motion is due to report its fourth-quarter results on March 24.
Oppenheimer analyst Ittai Kidron said it was not clear why Research in Motion did not raise its revenue and earnings-per-share targets when it expects a greater number of subscribers.
He suggested the company could be being conservative, or may have cleared some of its inventory, both of which he said would be positive developments. He added that it is also possible fewer customers are buying replacement BlackBerrys, which he called a 'mixed' sign.
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