RIM takeover beckons Microsoft with cheapest multiple: Real M&A

Research In Motion Ltd has lost so much value that an acquirer could pay a 50 per cent premium and still buy the BlackBerry maker for a lower multiple than any company in the industry.

RIM, once worth $83 billion, has fallen more than 80 per cent from its record three years ago, as Apple Inc’s iPhone and Google Inc’s Android platform siphoned off smartphone customers.

While Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis, RIM’s co-chief executive officers, said last week their commitment to RIM was “stronger than ever,” the company may now attract Microsoft Corp and Dell Inc, BMO Harris Private Banking said. A buyer would get a smartphone maker that is still dominant among corporate clients, offers greater security with its own e-mail servers and generates more free cash versus its market value than any of its rivals. Paying $40 a share still values RIM at a discount to comparable companies in the industry. “Given how significant the deterioration of the stock price has been, that alone will cause interest,” said Paul Taylor, who oversees $14.5 billion, including RIM shares, as chief investment officer at BMO Harris in Toronto.