BlackBerry CEO Promises Profitability, Pacifies Shareholders

The company formerly known as Research In Motion — which has been going by BlackBerry in marketing materials since January and only just got shareholder approval for the name change earlier this week — has struggled immensely in recent years. If its first quarter earnings report is any indication, that struggle is still ongoing, but not for much longer, according to BlackBerry CEO Thorsten Heins.

According to reports, Heins more or less pleaded for patience Tuesday at the company's annual meeting, stating, "We are still in the midst of a major, complex transition of this company, and like most of these transformations...progress can be volatile."

This volatility seems to refer to BlackBerry's most recent financial results, released last month, which were something of a disappointment, falling short of expectations. To be fair, the company's figures were mostly up — revenue increased 15 percent over the prior quarter to $3.1 billion, while device shipments rose 13 percent to 6.9 million units worldwide. However, it reported an operating loss of $84 million.


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As a result of these figures, likely combined with the general attitude toward BlackBerry lately, BlackBerry's stock price fell 28 percent.

But, according to Heins, this is all according to plan — sort of. Specifically, he stated that the company is in the second stage of its three-stage turnaround plan and that the third stage, in fact, involves profitability. This seemed to appease shareholders somewhat as BlackBerry stock rose nine cents, or just under 1 percent, at close Tuesday.

Indeed, by all reports, investors seemed optimistic at the event as many took to the microphone to state their hope for the company's future. Compared to last year, which saw many shareholders express concerns instead, this was definitely a positive improvement.

Apparently even activist shareholder Vic Alboini of Jaguar Financial had kind words for Heins, rather than his usual criticisms — although he did tell the BlackBerry CEO that breaking apart operations and selling them off would be a good idea.