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Here's Why BlackBerry (BBRY) Stock Is Gaining Ahead Of Earnings

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Shares of BlackBerry gained nearly 3% in early morning trading Monday, just a day before the company is set to report its third-quarter earnings. With two other stories involving BlackBerry breaking this week—including the news that it is entering the self-driving car business—many investors are getting excited about this stock right now.

New Phones, New Cars

While this week’s earnings release promises to be the most telling indication of the health of the company, BlackBerry’s other maneuvering could be even more interesting. For one, Monday marked the opening of its autonomous car research center in Ottawa, Canada.

The self-driving car research will center on the company’s subsidiary, QNX, which it purchased in 2010. BlackBerry initially utilized QNX’s industrial-focused software to upgrade its phone operating systems, but now the brand will be used to develop new technology related to sensors, cameras, and other self-driving car parts.

BlackBerry, which is based in Waterloo, Canada, apparently received permission to test self-driving Ford (F - Free Report) Lincoln vehicles on public Ontario roads las t month. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is slated to appear at the opening of the new research center on Monday.

BlackBerry’s foray into self-driving vehicles is certainly another sign that the company is moving past its traditional mobile phones business, but the company also recently inked a deal with China’s TCL Communication Technology Holdings that will see TCL design, manufacture, and sell BlackBerry-branded devices.

Again, this shows that BlackBerry is looking to shed some of its traditional operations, as BlackBerry will now retain the development of its security and software solutions, while TCL will handle all sales and distribution, serving as a global distributor of the phones.

Earnings Buzz

Heading into its earnings announcement, BlackBerry has outperformed the broader Telecommunications Services industry over the past three months, but the company fails to display any guarantees of a great report tomorrow.

Both the Zacks Consensus Estimate and the Most Accurate Estimate predict a loss of 4 cents, which gives BlackBerry an Earnings ESP of 0.00% and makes surprise prediction difficult. The stock also has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), which does not provide any more evidence.

Nevertheless, shares of BBRY have gained 3.13% over the past three months, while its industry peers have declined 2% on average over that time period.

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