Research in Motion's BlackPad May Help Stock Close Ground on Apple
I have been making the case that Research in Motion (RIMM) is a good, safe investment as technology stocks go, or at least that it's a better, safer investment than its hipper, more enthralling rival Apple (AAPL). Here are links to posts setting out the argument in the context of the slow initial sales of the BlackBerry Torch and the iPhone 4 antenna glitch.
I said that some catalyst would be needed - and would probably come along - for Research in Motion to begin outperforming. It wasn't the iPhone 4 hardware issue; it could be the BlackPad, which is expected to be Research in Motion's answer to the Apple iPad.
Zacks Investment Research, the Wall Street Journal and others have reported that a Research in Motion tablet computer is on the way. The device is forecast to have a seven-inch touch screen, a camera or two, a new, custom-tailored operating system and various ways of connecting to the outside world.
With the BlackBerry smart phone line appearing somewhat tired, Research in Motion has been desperate for a next big thing. If that thing turns out to be an iPad killer, or at least an iPad slow-downer, then so much the better.
Research in Motion's throng of detractors no doubt will say that the stock remains a dud and that the recent gains amount to nothing more than a dog having its day. The more hopeful explanation for the uptick is that Wall Street is beginning to recognize the stock's growth potential based on its earnings prospects and bargain valuation.
Come back Friday for a look at the long-term investment case for Research in Motion and reaction from analysts and traders to any further developments about the BlackPad.
