RIM Looks to Rebound

It's show time for BlackBerry smartphone maker Research In Motion(RIMM Quote) as the company gets set to report its third-quarter results Thursday.

The stock of Ontario, Canada-based RIM had been on a tear until recently, and the company has emerged as one of the biggest stories on Wall Street with a market capitalization of $56.9 billion.

But in the past few weeks, concerns that a slowdown in the financial services sector could negatively affect demand for RIM's BlackBerry smartphones have weighed on the stock.

Research in Motion Takes Tech for a Ride

The company's shares, which gained nearly 12% in the last three months, declined approximately 6.5% in the last four weeks.

A strong earnings report could help turn the tide and set the stock, which has in the past three quarters always wobbled before the results, on track again.

Analysts expect RIM to beat third-quarter expectations and to offer strong guidance for the fourth quarter.

Company watchers say RIM's phones, including the Pearl and Curve, remain popular and should help sustain sales.

"We are looking for continuation of strong top-line growth," says John Derrick, co-manager of the Holmes Growth Fund(ACBGX Quote), which holds RIM in its portfolio, "and we want them to maintain their margins."

For the third quarter, analysts polled by Thomson Financial are expecting earnings of 62 cents a share on revenue of $1.65 billion, compared with earnings of 31 cents a share on revenue of $835 million for the year-ago quarter.