Apple down, BlackBerry up: The new normal?

BlackBerry's Z10 may not look that much different from Apple's iPhone. But the two stocks are moving in opposite directions.

The second quarter is looking a lot like the first quarter for two smartphone makers who share their corporate monikers with the name of a fruit.

Apple (AAPL) fell nearly 2% Monday. The iEverything maker's shares were down 16% in the first three months of the year, making them one of the worst performers in the S&P 500.

Meanwhile, BlackBerry (BBRY) was up more than 5% Monday. The stock gained more than 20% in the first quarter on hopes that the company's new Z10 smartphone will help boost BlackBerry's sagging sales and profits.

Will this trend continue for the foreseeable future? Several traders on StockTwits feel that there has been a shift in investor mentality. Apple may have a hard time moving higher until the company can prove that it does have a hot new product in its arsenal and not just incremental upgrades to its iPhone and iPad lines.

ivanhoff
Without proper marketing, any smart phone or tablet is a commodity. $AAPL hasn't had a decent commercial campaign in years.

The Apple ads have been lackluster lately. I wonder if that will change now that Scott Trattner, the guy who was responsible for many of Apple's successful ads is back at the agency that works with Apple. Trattner had left the Apple agency last summer for a short stint at an agency that works with top Apple rival Samsung.

chicagosean
There's no mystery to $AAPL's continued selloff. The World's largest holding that took years to build takes a long time to unwind. Bearish

Very good point. With so many big institutions amassing gargantuan stakes in Apple, they may still have a lot to sell. That said, at least one trader feels that the sell-off can't last much longer.

Gh0stTrade515
$AAPL Wow. This is absolutely amazing. Tempted to go long soon.

I agree. Apple may no longer be a Wall Street stud. It may be a classic Missouri stock now and has to show investors that there is a legitimate reason to get excited again.

But at 10 times fiscal 2013 earnings estimates and with $137 billion in cash, it seems like Apple is a relatively safe stock at this point that potentially has huge upside. If it puts that cash to use with an increased dividend, that could juice returns. And Apple could really climb sharply if it finally shows the world a new product category like the long-rumored iTV.

New: Apple and BlackBerry are two of CNNMoney's 10 Hot Stocks that readers love

The resurgence of BlackBerry is proof positive that a stock can skyrocket when expectations are low. Sure, BlackBerry may finally have put fears about the company running out of cash in the rear view mirror. But many investors are still betting against the stock. It's heavily shorted and that could keep the stock from going that much higher.

Slipkid
$BBRY Looks as if a lot of shorts are bailing now that upgrades have started Bullish

jq3
$BBRY individual longs will not do anything to combat the shorts. we need that flood of institutional money. Bullish

Exactly. BlackBerry's latest earnings report may have scared some, but not all, shorts away. But for BlackBerry to keep going higher for the long haul, large investors are probably going to have to scoop up the stock. I'm not sure that's happening.

Related: Stock market 'leaders' are really losers

If anything, it seems that the so-called smart money flowing out of Apple may be going into Android leader Google (GOOG) ... not the company that some people still stubbornly call Research in Motion. ("His momma named him Clay, I'mma call him Clay.")

Stevez1
$BBRY of course well all claim to be buying a Z10 while grabbing a Galaxy 3 for under $100. Own the stock, not the phone

Too funny. BlackBerry needs consumers to stop buying Apple and Samsung phones and buy more Z10s. Hopefully some BlackBerry bulls will eventually want to buy the new phone. If BlackBerry shareholders aren't interested in the Z10, it's hard to imagine that the stock will be able to hold on to these gains.

Posted in: Apple, BlackBerry, iphone, smartphones, z10

• BlackBerry back from dead (for now) with Z10

  The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Paul R. La Monica. Other than Time Warner, the parent of CNNMoney, Abbott Laboratories and AbbVie, La Monica does not own positions in any individual stocks.

  We're number 3! We're number 3! And we might slip to number 4? For BlackBerry (BBRY) investors, it doesn't seem to matter.

  BlackBerry, the technology company formerly known as Research in Motion, has a lot going MORE

  Paul R. La Monica - Mar 14, 2013 1:18 PM ET
  Posted in: Apple, BlackBerry, Galaxy S IV, iphone, Samsung, z10

• Investors love their BlackBerry (stock)

  There's a lot riding on BlackBerry's new smartphone, which is about to hit the U.S.

  So far, investors seem to be in the smartphone makers corner.

  Shares of BlackBerry (BBRY) rallied nearly 11% Monday.

  "I'm not dead yet!" could be BlackBerry's mantra, to quote Monty Python. After multiple misses and few hits, the Canadian smartphone maker seems to be on the right path.

  The Z10, which features an all-touch keyboard, will make its U.S. MORE

  Catherine Tymkiw - Mar 11, 2013 12:13 PM ET
  Posted in: Apple, BlackBerry, blackberry Z10, iphone, lenovo, smartphone, stock, takeover, z10

• Research in Motion surges 10% while Apple tanks

  Oh, how the tables have turned in the smartphone world ... at least when it comes to stocks.

  Apple shares continued to take a tumble, while shares of Research in Motion rallied again. Traders on StockTwits could barely contain themselves.

  joemccann
  $AAPL breaks below $500. Meanwhile, $RIMM up nearly 25% in less than 2 trading days.

  Yes, RIM (RIMM) shares jumped more than 10% Monday. And the mighty Apple (AAPL), the most valuable tech company in MORE

  Ben Rooney - Jan 14, 2013 12:38 PM ET
  Posted in: Apple, BlackBerry, investing, iphone, Research in Motion, smartphone, stocks, Wall Street

• RIM gets its groove back with BlackBerry 10

  Research in Motion is hoping to get its groove back with the upcoming launch of BlackBerry 10, but whether it will work is anybody's guess.

  For now, investors are willing to give the company somewhat of a chance. Shares of RIM (RIMM) rose 5% Thursday following news that the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency will begin a pilot program early next year to test the company's new smartphones and MORE

  Hibah Yousuf - Dec 13, 2012 1:00 PM ET
  Posted in: Apple, BlackBerry, blackberry 10, byod, government, ice, iphone, Research in Motion, RIM, rimm, smartphone

• RIM, Nokia, Facebook, Yahoo: Zombie techs live!

  The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Paul R. La Monica. Other than Time Warner, the parent of CNNMoney, and Abbott Laboratories, La Monica does not own positions in any individual stocks.

  At one point this year, investors were assuming that the market for mobile devices and advertising began and ended with just two companies: Apple (AAPL) and Google (GOOG). They were the Home Depot and Lowe's of MORE

  Paul R. La Monica - Nov 29, 2012 12:41 PM ET
  Posted in: Apple, BlackBerry, FaceBook, Google, marissa mayer, mobile, Nokia, RIM, Yahoo

• RIM shares fall as hopes for new BlackBerry fade

  After a few moments in the sun, smartphone pioneer Research in Motion is again feeling the wrath of fickle investors.

  Shares of the BlackBerry-maker fell 6% in afternoon trading Tuesday.

  RIM (RIMM) shares had been on a tear over the past few months. The stock rose to about $12 on Monday, nearly double the low it hit in late September.

  The advance has been driven in part by hopes that RIM, which has MORE

  Ben Rooney - Nov 27, 2012 1:53 PM ET
  Posted in: BlackBerry, iphone, Research in Motion, smartphone, stocks

• RIM's Monty Python moment: I'm not dead!

  You'd think people would avoid a company that's losing money and reporting massive declines in revenue like the plague. But Research in Motion (RIMM), maker of the not as popular as it used to be BlackBerry smartphone, surged nearly 13% Friday morning even though RIM posted a big quarterly loss and more than 30% drop in sales.

  The reason? Like the disease-infested peasant in "Monty Python & The Holy Grail," RIM MORE

  Paul R. La Monica - Sep 28, 2012 2:03 PM ET
  Posted in: Apple, BlackBerry, Microsoft, Research in Motion, RIM, short sellers, StockTwits

• Bad timing: BlackBerry outage hits RIM on iPhone 5 day

  Research in Motion (RIMM) really can't catch a break. The troubled (to put it mildly) maker of the BlackBerry brand of phones/e-mail devices has been struggling due to brutal competition from the likes of Apple (AAPL) and the army of companies in the Google (GOOG) Android camp, most notably Samsung.

  With Apple's iPhone 5 (iOS6 map app warts and all) debuting Friday to long lines outside of Apple stores and those MORE

  Paul R. La Monica - Sep 21, 2012 12:45 PM ET
  Posted in: Apple, BlackBerry, iPhone 5, Research in Motion, RIM, StockTwits

• BlackBerry takeover? Wanna buy a bridge too?

  The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Paul R. La Monica. Other than Time Warner, the parent of CNNMoney, and Abbott Laboratories, La Monica does not own positions in any individual stocks.

  I had dinner with a bunch of friends last night. One of them wanted to show me a picture from Facebook that my wife posted earlier in the day which I had not yet seen. He MORE

  Paul R. La Monica - Aug 9, 2012 1:01 PM ET
  Posted in: Android, Apple, BlackBerry, Google, iphone, Research in Motion, Samsung, smartphones