"Given our belief BB10 smartphones will struggle to gain traction in the highly competitive smartphone market, we believe RIM may eventually sell assets, sell the entire company, or materially change its business model to a smaller niche supplier," Canaccord Genuity analysts T. Michael Walkley and Matthew D. Ramsay wrote Wednesday in a daily letter to investors.
RIM's announcement this week that it anticipates an operating loss in the first quarter has further hurt the credibility of a company whose market valuation has deteriorated in the face of weak sales and a widely held view that BlackBerry has fallen behind innovators like its more successful rival Apple. The stock has plummeted an astonishing 93 percent since its peak in 2008, according to The Associated Press.
Speculation is rising over what RIM is actually worth and what components of its business remain attractive for potential suitors. Canaccord Genuity isn't bullish on the consumer business.
