BlackBerry Shares Edge Higher Amid Raised Estimates at RBC, Firm Cites 'Faster-Than-Expected Channel Fill'

RBC Capital's Mark Sue published a note Tuesday morning voicing a slightly more optimistic view on BlackBerry BBRY. In addition to boosted unit estimates, Sue also raised his earnings and sales estimates for BlackBerry. Sue is now looking for BlackBerry 10 device shipments around 3.5 million in Q1 and around 4 million in Q2. The analyst had previously estimated units at 2.75 million for Q1 and at 3 million for Q2. Sue raised his CY13 unit estimate from 11 million to 14 million. The analyst moved his Q1 EPS and sales estimates from $(0.10) to $0.09 and from $3.1 billion to $3.5 billion, respectively. The Q2 EPS estimate was lifted from $0.04 to 0.14 and Sue's sales estimate was raised from $3 billion to $3.5 billion. Sue now sees BlackBerry reporting a profit during FY14: his EPS estimate moved from $(0.04) to $0.35. Full-year sales are now expected to be about $13.5 billion, up sharply from the prior $11.7 billion estimate. The RBC analyst cited "BB10 unit estimates on faster than expected channel fill of the Z10/Q10, along with the earlier than expected launch (Aug/Sept) of the entry level Q5." Sue warned, however, ". Beyond channel-fill, upgrades from diehard users and price stimulation, the picture remains blurry, particularly as competition remains fierce and BlackBerry transitions away from its mandatory service model." Sue reiterated a Sector Perform rating and $11-18 trading range on shares of BlackBerry. BlackBerry shares last traded at $14.44, up about 1 percent from Monday's close.