Research In Motion (RIMM, $139.00, down $1.48) is trading slightly lower ahead of its 1Q earnings release after the bell today. The company is expected to post earnings of $0.85 a share, more than double the profits of $0.39 versus last year’s quarterly comparisons. Wall Street is expecting sales to come in around $2.3 billion.
RIMM hit an all-time high of $148 last week and is down about $10 since. The stock has always been a big mover following an earnings announcement but this time could be even bigger. The stage is set for either a huge rally or a big sell-off. The bet from this camp says RIMM easily beats estimates today.
Option investors are placing huge bets on the BlackBerry maker but the key will be what the company says about its growth. There is plenty of room for RIMM to grow as the company only has a 1% share of the cell phone market. The wild card will be a slowdown in IT spending by businesses but corporations seem to be adapting the new smart phones because of their capabilities. Any hints of a slowdown could send the stock significantly lower.
I think the stars are aligned just right for RIMM and I’d almost be willing to take a chance on the July 150 calls (RULGJ, $4.45, down $1.05) which are down 20% today. They could represent a good entry point for a one-day all-or-nothing trade. However, it really is hard to say where RIMM goes from here. The July 130 puts (RULSV, $5.00, up $0.15) can be used as a hedge in case RIMM disappoints Wall Street.
Rick Rouse
Rick@OptionsMentoring.com