Research In
Motion Reports Third Quarter Results
Dec. 21, 2005
Research In Motion Limited reported
third quarter results for the three months ended November 26, 2005
(all figures in U.S. dollars and U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting
Principles (GAAP)).
Revenue for the third quarter of
fiscal 2006 was $560.6 million, up 53% from $365.9 million in the
same quarter of last year. The revenue breakdown for the quarter was
approximately 70% for handhelds, 19% for service, 7% for software
licenses and 4% for other revenue. Revenue for the nine months ended
November 26, 2005 was $1.5 billion, up 59% from $946 million in the
same period last year. Total handheld devices shipped in the quarter
were approximately 1.1 million, for a total of approximately 2.9
million handheld devices shipped so far this year.
RIM has updated its accounting for
the NTP litigation following the district court's ruling on November
30, 2005 which found that the March 2005 settlement agreement
between NTP and RIM was not binding. Although it is difficult to
estimate any future settlement or costs associated with the
litigation, we are maintaining the previously recorded $450 million
as the best current estimate. The actual liability may be
significantly higher or lower than this amount depending on further
developments or resolution of this matter and will be accounted for
at that time in accordance with GAAP. At the time of the March 2005
settlement agreement, RIM recorded $20 million of the $450 million
litigation accrual as an acquired license on its balance sheet. The
district court's ruling that the settlement was not binding led to
the full writedown of this asset, which, after accumulated
depreciation, had a net book value of $18.3 million. The total
litigation accrual of $26.2 million, which also included an
incremental charge of $7.9 million for NTP related legal and
professional fees, was offset by a related tax recovery of $7.2
million.
"Although our litigation has
certainly been pulled into the spotlight recently, we remain
intensely focused on serving our customers and partners and
maintaining our longstanding culture of innovation," said Jim
Balsillie, Chairman and Co-CEO at RIM. "The third quarter was
an important period for RIM as we continued to launch BlackBerry
with new carrier partners around the world and readied an
extraordinary lineup of new handsets, software and services that
once again raised the competitive bar and entrenched RIM's
technology leadership."
GAAP net income for the quarter was
$120.1 million, or $0.61 per share diluted, as compared with net
income of $90.4 million, or $0.46 per share diluted, in the same
period last year. Adjusted EPS, excluding the intangible asset
writedown related to the non-enforcement of the March 2005
settlement agreement, legal fees, and the related tax impact, was
$0.71 per share diluted. A reconciliation of adjusted EPS to GAAP
EPS is provided in the table below. Adjusted earnings per share do
not have any standardized meaning prescribed by GAAP and may not to
be comparable to similar metrics presented by other companies.
RIM added approximately 645,000 new
subscriber accounts during the quarter and at the end of the
quarter, the total BlackBerry subscriber account base was
approximately 4.3 million. The number of subscriber accounts is a
non-financial metric and does not have any standardized meaning
prescribed by GAAP and is unlikely to be comparable to similar
metrics reported by other companies. It is intended to illustrate
the growth in RIM's subscriber account base and should not be relied
upon as an indicator of RIM's financial performance.
RIM is maintaining revenue guidance
in the range of $590-$620 million for the fourth quarter of fiscal
2006, ending March 4, 2006. Subscriber additions in the fourth
quarter are expected to be lower than previously forecast, in the
range of 700,000-750,000. Earnings per share for the fourth quarter
continue to be forecast in the range of 76-81 cents per share
diluted. As a reminder, RIM's fiscal fourth quarter consists of 14
weeks, rather than the normal 13 weeks, due to the rolling 13 week
quarterly cycle that RIM employs which necessitates a 14 week
quarter every 5-6 years to realign the fiscal year end to the
calendar year end.
Revenue for the first quarter of
fiscal 2007, ending June 3, 2006, is currently expected to be in the
range of $610-$650 million. GAAP earnings per share for the first
quarter is expected to be in the range of 77-84 cents per share
diluted. The stock option expense impact to Q1 earnings, of
approximately 3 cents per share, is included in Q1 GAAP EPS
guidance. Please note that going forward, beginning with the Q4
fiscal 2006 earnings report in April, RIM will be providing one
quarter of forward guidance.
The total of cash, cash equivalents,
short-term and long-term investments was $1.6 billion as at November
26, 2005, compared to $1.9 billion at the end of the previous
quarter, a decrease of $293 million over the prior quarter. This
reflects the $391 million used to repurchase 6.3 million shares
during the quarter, offset in part by cash generated from
operations.
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