BlackBerry Ltd. released its second-quarter fiscal 2020 results this Tuesday morning, and the Waterloo-based technology company reported 16 per cent revenue growth year-over-year and a US$40 million net loss.
“All of our businesses performed at, or better than, our revenue expectations – except for enterprise software and services (department), or ESS,” the CEO of the company John S. Chen told analysts in a conference call.
He also explained the ESS was not so successful because of the “retooled” sales team that didn’t execute well in closing deals.
In response to that, BlackBerry will be making some changes in its team. For example, Steve Capelli will be transferred from CFO to the position of chief revenue officer on Oct. 1.
BlackBerry used to be one of the leading smartphone vendors in the world, reaching its peak in Dec. 2012. However, the company’s number of customers went down year after year without ever going back up due to the success of IOS and Android programs.
Because of its declining customer base, the company shifted its focus during the past couple of years. Now, BlackBerry produces software such as high-end antivirus programs and provides services to secure the internet of things. The company is also working on developing software for Jaguar Land Rover’s cars.
BlackBerry, which keeps its books in American dollars, had a loss per basic share of US$0.08. On the other hand, the company generated a free cash flow of US$14 million.
However, the market is not responding positively to this report. According to The Street, “the shares of BlackBerry were down 19.88 per cent in trading on Tuesday, falling to US$6.02 on the New York Stock Exchange.”
“I think we had a very good quarter – I am actually surprised the stocks are down,” Chen said in an interview with The Street. “Frankly, I do not understand the reaction, but the market has its own way of working.”
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