Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis (Research In Motion, January)Mark Blinch/Reuters
On June 19, 2008, Research In Motion Ltd. (now BlackBerry Ltd., of course), hit a record high of $147.55 in New York. It was all downhill from there, and the shares are now nearly 95 per cent lower. But did the 2008 peak bring contrarian signs that the good days were drawing to a close?
Here are the Bloomberg News headlines in the lead-up to the record high, and the days that followed. While it isn't clear that RIM was heading for a cliff, you might be able to spot some signs of an approaching turning point.
May 12: "Balsillie calls new BlackBerry 'quantum step forward'"
May 15: "Research In Motion to debut touch-screen BlackBerry, WSJ says"
June 2: "Research In Motion, Visto end dispute over patents"
June 4: "Goldman Sachs raises handset forecast on more affordable phones" [RIM among those tapped to benefit]
June 6: "Nokia loses smartphone share; Research In Motion, Apple gain"
June 9: "Apple unveils faster iPhone to lure business buyers"
June 10: "U.S. women snapping up smartphones in record numbers, NYT says"
June 25: "Research In Motion profit, forecast trail estimates"
June 26: "Research In Motion shares fall most in seven years"
David Berman