BlackBerry lifts annual revenue forecast on strength in automotive software business

According to Business Recorder, BlackBerry has lifted its revenue projection for the full financial year, a move it tied to a record quarter at the QNX unit. That division's sales grew 27 per cent to $80.3 million in the three months ended August 31. In premarket trading, the US-listed stock gained close to 3 per cent.

Revised guidance now puts 2027 full-year sales at $616 million to $636 million, versus an earlier $594 million to $621 million range. Second-quarter revenue reached $163.3 million, ahead of the $145.6 million analysts had pencilled in, according to LSEG data. The third-quarter outlook of $143 million to $154 million compares with analyst estimates of $149.6 million.

Management linked the gains to automotive demand, as the move to software-defined vehicles increases both the number of cars that can use the software and the code in each one. Automakers including Audi, General Motors, Hyundai and Mercedes-Benz use the platform, and CEO John Giamatteo told Reuters that it runs across cockpit, driver-assistance and body-control functions. A separate agreement with Coretura, a joint venture of Volvo Group and Daimler Truck, selected the software for next-generation commercial vehicles and could lift the royalty backlog by more than $100 million, according to BlackBerry, which described it as the biggest QNX deal so far.