Editor’s Note: BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY)
BlackBerry Ltd. (BB) Chief Executive Officer Thorsten Heins stands to make $55.6 million if he sells the company and is ousted. That’s the amount he’s entitled to receive if BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) has a change of control and Heins is pushed out by the new owners, according to a May proxy filing. The figure, which includes salary, incentive payments and equity awards, is based on BlackBerry’s stock price at the end of the fiscal fourth quarter. The plan was approved by shareholders at its annual meeting on July 9.
With BlackBerry exploring a sale, decent BB10 apps may be even harder to find (BGR)
As if BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) wasn’t already having enough trouble wooing developers and getting top apps on its BlackBerry 10 platform, a new report suggests things are only going to get worse. BlackBerry announced earlier this week that it is exploring a sale of the company as it looks for ways to reverse course, and Forbes contributor Ewan Spence believes the news will probably scare developers away. This would be awful news for BlackBerry and its users, of course, as the company’s app store is already so barren compared to rival platforms.
BlackBerry Worth $12 to $13 Per Share, Analyst Says (TechnoBuffalo)
All of a sudden, the possibility that another company will swoop in and buy BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) is starting to seem very real now that the Canadian smartphone-maker has formed a committee to consider the option. It’s hard to say exactly how much another company might pay to snatch up the once-great BlackBerry, but according to the latest projections it won’t cost as much per a share as the company’s leadership is likely hoping for. Speaking with AllThingsD, Stuart Jeffrey from Nomura Equity Research predicts that the company could sell for $12 or $13 a share, about $1 to $2 above today’s $11 closing price. That’s down from earlier reports that pegged the buyout price at at least $14 or $15 per share.
WhatsApp for BlackBerry 10 Updated to 2.11.1 With Voice Improvements & More (BerryReview)
WhatsApp has updated their BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) 10 client today. The new update introduces fixes and improvements for voice messages. They also let you set auto-download options for media and emoji input for profile, status, and group subjects. They have also improved push notifications.
BlackBerry’s Enterprise Strength Is The Crown Jewel For Potential Buyers (Forbes)
BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY)’s days as an independent public company may be numbered. With sales plummeting amid heightened smartphone competition and BB10′s launch not helping much, the beleaguered handset maker announced Monday that it has formed a special committee to explore “strategic alternatives”, including a possible sale of the company. Among the possibilities, Prem Watsa, who resigned from BlackBerry’s board citing a conflict of interest, could be interested in taking the company private and turning it around away from the prying eyes of the public. Prem Watsa is currently the chief executive of BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY)’s largest shareholder, Fairfax Financial Holdings. Apart from Fairfax, it is not yet clear who the other suitors are, but it is likely that BlackBerry could fetch the most value if broken up and sold in parts.
