Research In Motion cut its full-year outlook citing a "challenging" start to its fiscal year. The BlackBerry maker reported revenues for the fiscal first quarter to 28 May of USD 4.9 billion, down 12 percent from the previous quarter and up 16 percent from a year earlier. RIM shipped approximately 13.2 million BlackBerry handheld devices in the quarter, below its earlier outlook for 13.5-14.5 million, and also sold around 500,000 BlackBerry Playbook tablets. The company said the slowdown was continuing in Q2 and delays in new product launches to the end of August mean results aren't expected to improve until the second half of the fiscal year. RIM reported Q1 net profit of USD 695 million or USD 1.33 per share diluted, down from USD 769 million or USD 1.38 per share a year ago. That was in line with its outlook for USD 1.30-1.37, which was cut in a profit warning in late April. RIM forecast second-quarter EPS of USD 0.75-1.05 on revenues of USD 4.2-4.8 billion. The full-year result is now forecast at USD 5.25-6.00 per share, versus an earlier estimate of USD 7.50. RIM said it will start this quarter a cost-cutting programme, including job cuts. The aim is to take out redundancies and reallocate resources to areas that offer the highest growth opportunities, such as accelerating new product introductions, the company said. Any charges for the plan will be taken in Q2. The company also plans to buy back up to 5 percent of its shares, using some of its USD 2.9 billion in cash available at the end of May.
