BlackBerry (NYSE:BB) was once the darling of the mobile tech world. So much a darling that, at the time, then-President Barack Obama needed special security protocols to ensure he could continue to use his BlackBerry while in the White House. Now, BB stock jumped a hefty 12% in Friday afternoon’s trading thanks to reports that it may soon have a new buyer.
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The buyer in question: none other than Veritas Capital. The exact terms of the offer are as yet unknown, largely because the exact extent of the offer is also largely unknown, even to Veritas Capital itself. It’s currently considering its offer, and the talks are in the early stages. There may even be a possible deal in which Veritas acquires one part of BlackBerry, and other potentially interested parties pick up other parts of BlackBerry.
BlackBerry would be no stranger to such a play. Back in March, BlackBerry sold off patents for a combination of cash and future royalties valued at $900 million. So the idea that BlackBerry might sell off its component parts in order to focus on one key aspect isn’t out of line either. Also back in March, BlackBerry went to India, where it set up an Internet of Things (IoT) Center of Engineering Excellence in Hyderabad. BlackBerry also has BlackBerry IVY, its own in-vehicle software system, so it could focus on that.
Regardless of BlackBerry’s ultimate moves, analysts are still taking a wait-and-see stance. Four Hold ratings make BlackBerry a pure Hold prospect. With an average price target of $5 per share, today’s pricing action gave BlackBerry a new, albeit fractional, downside risk.
