Palm expected to move approximately 623,000 Pre phones in first quarter

A recent article in Reuters didn’t reveal much new about the device itself, but plenty about Palm the company. Reuters quoted James Faucette of Pacific Crest on Palm’s skyrocketing stock price (up nearly 300% from the Pre unveiling on January 8, and an astonishing 740% from its December 5, 2008 low):

“If you're buying (PALM shares) now, definitely what you're looking at is that they're going to have the most valuable asset in the industry. At some point, somebody will want to pay a premium for that. From a products perspective, the impact on the market is probably as important as iPhone.”

Reuters also surveyed five different analysts for the estimation of how many Pre phones Sprint will manage to sell during the next quarter. The estimates ranged from 500,000 to 865,000, with an average of 623,000 units, which while not anywhere near iPhone numbers, would still be an increase of close to 30% of the last quarter (and that’s not including sales of other phones Palm produces, like the Treo Pro). Even with the increased unit sales, it’s not likely we’ll see Palm moving financially into the black anytime before the end of the year.

Thanks to Phenomenon for the tip!