Garmin (GRMN), a maker of satellite navigation gear and devices for fitness and outdoor enthusiasts, saw its stock tumble Wednesday after being downgraded by Pacific Crest Securities. Pacific Crest analyst Brad Erickson cut his rating on Garmin to underperform from sector perform, citing a bunch of risks to the stock. He said Wall Street is overestimating the upside potential for Garmin’s Vivofit activity bands and Virb action cameras. Garmin’s
After smartphones ate into its core business of portable navigation devices, Garmin focused on new markets, including wearable fitness bands and outdoor enthusiast gadgets. Its turnaround efforts are starting to show in top- and bottom-line growth. Garmin (GRMN) stock peaked at 125.68 in October 2007, just four months after the release of Apple ‘s (AAPL) first iPhone. The next year was rough for Garmin, which saw its stock bottom out at 14.40 in in November 2008. But it’s been climbing back. Garmin ended Wednesday up 1.2% to 61.24. On April 30, Garmin said its sales rose 10% year over year to $583 million for the quarter ended March 29. The revenue gain followed five quarters in a row of shrinking sales. Earnings per share rose 38% to 55 cents, its second consecutive quarter of double-digit growth after four quarters of decline. Garmin is “slimming down and getting fit,” RBC Capital…
Apple and Google might be poised to enter the market for wearable fitness and health trackers, but for now privately held Fitbit is the No. 1 seller of such devices. San Francisco-based Fitbit is the market leader, with a majority share of activity trackers sold in the first quarter, ABI Research reported Thursday. Garmin (GRMN) was in second place, followed by Nike (NKE) and Jawbone. Nike, which makes the Nike FuelBand, plans to exit the device market to focus on software for wellness trackers.