Hold on to your hats if you are a RIM stock owner. In a move that might drive Jim Cramer mad, Research in Motion reported its first billion-dollar sales quarter and today announced plans to split its surging stock on a three-for-one basis.

RIM released first-quarter results after the markets closed on Thursday and that showed revenues of $1.08 billion US, up almost 77 per cent from the same quarter last year.

RIM says it will ship its 20-millionth BlackBerry unit this summer. Net income in Q1 was a record $223.2 million US ($1.17 a share), up 73 per cent over last year. RIM shares surged $28 US in after-hours trading to almost $194 US.

The three-for-one stock split will be effective August 20 said RIM.

The company reported it added 1.2 million BlackBerry subscribers in the quarter, bringing its total subscriber base to more than nine million. It also shipped 2.4 million devices in Q1 and said it expects to ship its 20-millionth BlackBerry this summer.

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