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November 23, 2021

Black Friday, indeed; RIM's stock is surging

Black Friday gets its name from one of two places.

It either comes from Philadelphia, where the day after Thanksgiving became such a pedestrian and vehicle traffic bog that Philly cops derisively gave the day its nickname back in the 1960s.

Or, it comes from what Black Friday has become, a shopping superday so lucrative it turns a massive profit for retailers, or helps them get “in the black.”

Perhaps 2012, though, will give Black Friday a more mystical, otherworldly connotation. Because believe it or not, RIM’s stock is surging.

Indeed, for the moribund Research In Motion, perhaps a bit of black magic was what it took to stir its decrepit stock from the crypt, where it’s been buried since mid-2008.

*Bing: When to buy a stock

This morning on the NASDAQ, and yesterday on the TSX, RIM has been the story, jumping as much as 13 per cent in U.S. trading (markets were closed yesterday for American Thanksgiving) and as much as 17 per cent in Toronto.

As of noon Friday, RIM was still growing in value on the NASDAQ, while it had given back about 4.5 per cent of Thursday’s gained share value on the TSX.

What’s behind the surge?

For RIM, whose stock lost some 92 per cent in value over the past four years, all it seemed to need was a vote of confidence for its new BlackBerry 10 operating system, which has been much delayed but is set to release nonetheless on Jan. 30.

It’s been tough to generate good press for the BlackBerry 10, but analyst Kris Thompson of National Bank Financial offered some, upping his previous estimates for the phone’s sales.

Thompson changed his forecast from 31.7 million units sold next fiscal year to 35.5 million units, and presto, RIM’s stock enjoys a boost, no matter how brief it may turn to be.

By Jason Buckland, MSN Money

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Gordon PowersGordon Powers

A long-time fund company executive, Gordon Powers now heads up the Affinity Group, a financial services consulting firm. Gordon was a personal finance columnist for the Globe & Mail for many years, has taught retirement planning...

Jason BucklandJason Buckland

The modern-day MC Hammer of money, Jason can often be seen spending cash that isn’t his with the efficiency of a Wilt Chamberlain first date. After cutting his teeth as a reporter for the Toronto Sun, he joined the MSN Money team with...