RIMM Shares Fall 16% and takes the NASDAQ with it

Research In Motion Limited (NASDAQ:RIMM) shares are falling hard this morning and taking the NASDAQ right down with it, big tech names such as Microsoft (NYSE:MSFT) down 2% and Dell (NASDAQ:DELL) down 1.5% are dragging the tech sector down.

RIMM shares are facing its worst single-session percentage loss for 2009 and the downgrades are just starting to come in.  Wasting no time at all, Deutsche Bank downgraded Research In Motion (Nasdaq: RIMM) to Sell this morning and lowered their price target fom $67 to $60.

Deutsche analyst says, "We see mounting competition and weak cashflow as material concerns. We think the outlook for RIM in the 2H looks challenging. Their new product portfolio appears to offer little that is meaningfully different from existing products. while competitors will be launching numerous new phones. Moreover, carriers are actively trying to bring down price points on smartphones, suggesting RIM faces worsening pricing pressure."

RIM's second quarter earnings fell short of the $1 per share analysts had expected for RIM, in part due to a patent settlement pay-out to e-mail provider Visto. The BlackBerry device maker also put forth a third-quarter forecast that fell short of Wall Street expectations. RIM shares took a tumble on the news, following weeks of gains built on better expectations.