Goldman Sachs Downgrades Research in Motion to Neutral on 'Soft AT&T Launch and Higher Expectations'

Goldman Sachs analyst Simon Jankowski downgraded Research in Motion

this morning, while lowering its price target from $19 to $17. In the report, Jankowski stated: "We remove BlackBerry (BBRY) from the Americas Buy List for two reasons. (1) The Z10 launch at AT&T on March 22 was disappointing, with limited marketing and tepid sell-through at AT&T and Best Buy stores alike. While we thought the international launch was solid, the US launch is critical for BlackBerry's ultimate success. (2) Consensus has moved closer to our view that the mix shift to BB10 would drive upside to ASPs and margins, as reflected in the stock's YTD appreciation, rising estimates, and several recent upgrades. Since being added to the Buy List on 11/29/2012, BBRY shares are up 34% vs the S&P 500 up 10%. Over the past 12 mo, shares are up 8% vs the S&P up 12%. Following the report, shares of Research in Motion fell 3.89 percent to $14.33.