If Blackberry inventory Stays Above $30 For 10 Days, The CEO ...

The remaining week of enterprise news has been NonStop GameStop. If through some chance you could have been dwelling below a rock or are only waking from a coma, here's a 10-2d recap: A bunch of users on a reddit discussion board called /WallStreetBets banded collectively to stage an uprising towards hedge cash that specialise in inserting brief bets towards struggling organizations. the usage of fee-free apps like Robinhood, the reddit military has stuck a large core-finger up at short-trading hedge funds who have been selecting on a handful of downtrodden companies, probably the most famous being GameStop. In a matter of days, this army of general day-traders drove GameStop's inventory expense up astronomically. The inventory, which traded for around $10 a share in December, briefly hit $483 on Thursday. The stock closed the week at $325 per share. At that level GameStop has a market cap of $22 billion. A yr in the past, GameStop's market cap become around $300 million.

but GameStop wasn't the handiest business to be blessed by means of reddit's surprising consideration. AMC, countrywide Beverage (maker of l. a. Croix – ticker symbol "FIZZ"), mattress bath & beyond, Fossil, past Meat and Blackberry had been all sent on insane curler coaster rides.

[I don't own stock in any of these companies and this article is not advising anyone to buy or sell anything, BUT in my opinion the music is going to stop soon and these companies will all see their share prices crash back down to reality.]

One guy who's truly hoping the tune maintains enjoying and is praying the reddit attention does not fade?

Blackberry CEO John Chen

(ADEK BERRY/AFP by the use of Getty photographs)

bear in mind Blackberries?

really, there's a high-quality probability that a bunch of americans studying this article right now never had a Blackberry.

to those young readers:

The iPhone was invented in 2007. in the decade or so before the iPhone existed, a lot of people had Blackberries. They had been notably standard for enterprise americans since it was truly the primary device that made emailing from a telephone practicable. right here's Andre 3000 preserving a Blackberry in 2004 at the thirty fifth Annual NAACP picture Awards:

(image via Frank Micelotta/Getty photos)

right here's a photo of me (Brian Warner, creator of CelebrityNetWorth) in June 2008 at a PlayBoy mansion birthday celebration, 10 drinks deep having fun with an excellent chicken nugget AND realizing that my Blackberry had immediately linked to the mansion wifi community, which changed into known as "Bunnies":

remember Playboy?

remember being out in public without a masks?

bear in mind going to parties?

Man the world has modified a lot. Anyhoo. returned to Blackberry.

The point is, Blackberries have been a huge deal for a long time. And for this reason, Blackberry the business was as huge deal for a long time.

In 2011, Blackberry, whose corporate identify turned into in fact research In motion, generated $20 billion in income. That translated into $4.7 billion in operating income. A year later Blackberry had a peak eighty million subscribers.

At it be all time excessive, Blackberry's mum or dad enterprise research in motion (ticker symbol "RIM") had a market cap north of $90 billion, which made it essentially the most advantageous business in all of Canada, by means of a kilometer (metric device).

sadly the last decade following its 2011 peak has been BRUTAL to RIM, which at some factor officially changed its corporate named to BlackBerry Ltd, and its ticker image to "BB".

On the day John Chen become named CEO of BlackBerry in November 2013, the stock rate changed into $7. simply a couple of years prior it peaked at $a hundred and forty four.

beneath Chen's suggestions, BlackBerry stock hasn't exactly thrived. it be basically flat-lined at $7, with a couple of quick spurts to $10.

John Chen's Contract

In March 2018, John Chen signed a contract extension that keeps him as CEO unless 2023. The contract allowed John to continue incomes his $three million base profits. It also gave him 5 million shares of BlackBerry that vest over five years (20% vest every yr). On the day the contract become signed, the inventory changed into trading at $12.50. So if the proportion rate by no means budged, they'd eventually be price $sixty two.5 million.

but there was a sweetener within the contract.

in response to a unique clause in the contract, if BlackBerry stock closes above $30 on ten days right through the contract's 5 years, John Chen receives a $ninety million money bonus. The inventory doesn't ought to close above $30 and stay there for 10 consecutive days, it just hast to shut above $30 on ten complete days. it might do it once next week, once more subsequent week, once more in a year… It simply has to end the day above $30 TEN instances.

prior to January 27, BlackBerry stock in the main bounced between $4 and $7 per share.

right here's where it receives entertaining:

For a number of short moments on Wednesday, January 27, BlackBerry hit $28 per share. It subsequently closed the day at $25 and closed the week at $14. but for those short moments, John Chen changed into $2 away from hitting his first of the ten $30 milestones.

however this is no longer all!

Chen has one more sweetener in his contract connected the BlackBerry's 10-day-normal share price. in keeping with his contract, Chen can obtain up to five million shares of BlackBerry if the business's 10-day-commonplace hits $16 after which $20.

BlackBerry inventory ended the week at a 10 day commonplace fee of $14.

If the reddit military manages to get BlackBerry up above $30, and kept it there for ten days, right here would take place for John Chen:

$90 million cash bonus

5 million share bonus, which at $30 would be worth $a hundred and fifty million

5 million inventory options can be value $one hundred fifty million =

$390 million

If I have been John Chen, i would delivery to familiarize myself with reddit forums…