RIM Takes a Trip to the Woodshed

Good apparently isn’t good enough for RIM investors. The BlackBerry maker reported earnings for its first fiscal quarter that rose 33 percent to $3.42 billion on strong sales. And while that was in line with the Street’s $3.41 billion consensus estimate, the company’s shares slipped nearly five percent in after-hours trading.

How can that be? Research in Motion (RIMM) sold 7.8 million BlackBerries in an abysmal economy. It added 3.8 million new BlackBerry subscriber accounts during the quarter. For its second quarter, RIM expects to earn 94 cents to $1.03 a share on revenue of $3.45-$3.70 billion. What’s not to like about that?

Plenty, apparently. Seems investors find the company’s forward guidance a bit lacking. Analysts forecast earnings of 97 cents a share on revenue of $3.61 billion.