Toronto, May 22, 2026, 13:06 EDT
BlackBerry Ltd. shares jumped more than 16% on Friday, touching fresh 52-week highs in Toronto and New York, as investors moved back into the Canadian software group’s automotive and secure-communications story.
The Toronto-listed stock traded at CA$10.69, up 16.45%, at 12:39 p.m. ET after reaching CA$10.93, while its U.S.-listed shares were shown at $7.78, up 16.99%, at 12:05 p.m. ET. Volumes were heavier than usual in Toronto, where Google Finance showed 4.65 million shares changing hands, close to the stock’s average volume of 4.73 million.
The move stood out on a stronger day for Canadian technology stocks. The S&P/TSX Composite hit a record high on Friday, helped by tech names, and Reuters reported earlier that BlackBerry was among the sector’s notable gainers. Allan Small, senior investment advisor at Allan Small Financial Group with iA Private Wealth, said investors were paying attention to “the tech world” as the market moved higher. Reuters
There was no single contract award disclosed on Friday. The rally followed a busy week of investor-facing and government-security news, including BlackBerry’s announcement that its AtHoc emergency communications platform completed 2026 Class D, or High, FedRAMP recertification. FedRAMP is the U.S. government program that reviews cloud services for cybersecurity standards.
Ramon Pinero, general manager of BlackBerry AtHoc, said the recertification reflected “security rigor.” Dubhe Beinhorn, senior vice-president for public sector, said the platform supported “trusted and compliant communications infrastructure.” BlackBerry said AtHoc is used by 80% of U.S. federal government agencies. Nasdaq
The company also put senior executives in front of investors this week. Chief Financial Officer Tim Foote and QNX President John Wall were scheduled to speak at CIBC’s Technology & Innovation Conference in Toronto on Thursday, with another appearance set for the Baird Global Consumer, Technology & Services Conference on June 2.
QNX remains the centre of the bull case. It is BlackBerry’s embedded operating-system business, software that runs inside cars and other machines where reliability matters. In April, BlackBerry reported QNX revenue of $78.7 million for the fourth quarter, up 20%, and said its QNX royalty backlog — expected future royalty revenue tied to customer design wins — was about $950 million.
BlackBerry has been trying to recast itself as a software company after years of retreat from handsets. Reuters reported last month that the company forecast first-quarter revenue above Wall Street estimates, with Chief Executive John Giamatteo pointing to more durable demand for “mission-critical solutions.” Reuters
The trade also fits a broader market hunt for automotive software names. 24/7 Wall St. reported Friday that Mobileye and Aurora Innovation also rose, while Nvidia slipped, framing the move around investor interest in autonomous and software-defined vehicles — cars whose functions are increasingly controlled by code.
But the stock now carries less room for error. BlackBerry still has to convert QNX backlog into revenue, hold government-security demand, and show that automotive customers keep spending if car production weakens. 24/7 Wall St. noted that the shares were trading above the average analyst target it cited and at a forward valuation that could punish any execution miss.
The next scheduled checks are close. BlackBerry lists its annual meeting and planned first-quarter fiscal 2027 earnings date for June 25, while management’s June 2 conference appearance gives investors another chance to test how much of Friday’s rally is backed by new orders, not just a hotter tape.
