BlackBerry has reported it’s in the black for the fourth quarter of the 2013 fiscal year and has sold one million Z10s.
The company announced its financial results today and said it had sold six million smartphones in total, including one million of its flagship handset, the Z10.
Profit was $US94 million ( £62 million), a BlackBerry spokesperson confirmed
The company reported GAAP income for the quarter from continuing operations of $US94 million or 18 cents per share diluted, compared with $US14 million in the quarter before and a loss of $US118 million in the same quarter of the fiscal year 2012.
BlackBerry reported GAAP income for the quarter including discontinued operations as $US98 million ( £64.7 million) or $US0.19 per share diluted, up on $US9 million in the previous quarter and a loss of $US125 million in the same quarter of 2012.
Adjusted earnings per share were $US0.22.
BlackBerry chief executive Thorsten Heins said the company had implemented numerous changes over the past year which had resulted in the company returning to profitability in the fourth quarter.
“As we go into our new fiscal year, we are excited with the opportunities for the BlackBerry 10 platform, and the commitments we are seeing from our global developers and partners.”
Decent traction for Z10s
Ovum chief telecoms analyst Jan Dawson said the million Z10s sold was a sign that the company achieved decent, if not stellar, traction in the quarter for its new devices.
“Given the supply constraints, late launch in the US and the decision to launch the Q10 later, this is a good start for the platform.”
The next quarter would provide a much better basis for judging BlackBerry long terms, with a full quarter of availability, the US launch as well as that of the Q10, and an increased marketing presence from BlackBerry and its partners, which should provide a better basis for judging performance, Dawson said.
“This quarter is likely to turn out to be an outlier, with shipments bouncing back next quarter and probably for several quarters afterwards. Anticipation of the launch of BlackBerry 10 likely depressed demand for BlackBerry devices throughout the quarter in markets where the device hadn’t launched yet.”
Subscribers down
Subscribers were down by three million to 76 million and revenue for the fourth quarter 2013 was down 2% to $US2.6 billion, and down 36% from the same quarter of the fiscal year 2012.
The revenue breakdown included 61% for hardware, with BlackBerry shipping six million smartphones and 370,000 PlayBook tablets.
CNET reported that the Z10 results did not include sales from the United States, where the Z10 was released on Friday.
Dawson said the loss of three million subscribers was a worrying sign.
“BlackBerry’s single biggest asset has been its large existing subscriber base, who are the most likely buyers of BlackBerry 10 devices, and the acceleration in the decline of that base reduces the size of the addressable market for BlackBerry 10.”
The loss was also a sign that the growth in emerging markets was no longer enough to offset the rapid decline in mature markets, and it was unlikely the company could reverse this trend long-term.
“As shipments have fallen, service revenues have become much more important, growing from 15% to 36% of BlackBerry’s overall revenues over the past few years. The loss in subscribers means declining service revenues, which will put further pressure on margins, which have dropped in recent years too.”
Full year revenue down
Revenue from continuing operations for the full fiscal year to March 2013 was $US11.1 billion, down 40% on 2012.
Adjusted net loss from continuing operations was $US317 million, from GAAP net loss of $US628 million, compared with a net income of $US1.2 billion in 2012.
Breakeven results in Q1
In its outlook statements, BlackBerry said it would be increasing its investment in marketing in the first quarter of fiscal 2014 to suppor the global launch of BlackBerry 10. Including this increase in spending, BlackBerry believed it would approach breakeven financial results in Q1, based on lower cost base, more efficient supply chain and improved hardware margins
Dawson said there was hope in the numbers, but also concerns.
“BlackBerry absolutely has to execute in the next quarter in getting the Z10 available in sufficient numbers, launching the Q10, getting carriers to ramp up their marketing, and building momentum around BB10, if it’s going to make a success of this new platform.”
