Shares of Research in Motion (RIMM) are taking it on the chin this morning, down $2.60, or 6%, at $40.25, as analysts continue to ponder the implications for the company following Nokia’s (NOK) reduced outlook yesterday.

As I wrote yesterday, some analysts see opportunity for RIM in Nokia’s flagging sales, but there’s also a concern Nokia’s turmoil at the hands of Android-based phones could be an omen for RIM as well.

For example, Jefferies & Co.’s Peter Misek today writes that average selling prices for the company’s wares could “collapse,” leading to an erosion of gross profit margin from 35% fiscal Q4 to 30% in the current quarter. And if operating profit on device sales falls to break-even, which he thinks it might, then the company’s profit would be dependent on subscription profits, which lag actual hardware sales.

Misek thinks Nokia’s deterioration highlights how difficult it is to transition operating systems — of particular concern to RIM as it moves from its “OS 7″ to the “QNX” operating system.

“We believe the transition from Blackberry OS to QNX will cause RIM to see the same pressures and challenges as Nokia is seeing, including ASP decline, margin erosion, and weakened carrier and consumer mindshare.”

Article courtesy of Tech Trader Daily