Optical stocks

Optical networking companies, which manufacture optical transceivers and components that convert electronic data into light signals and transmit them through fiber-optic cables. Many data centers are now upgrading their older copper wires, which are too slow and generate too much heat to handle the latest cloud and AI applications, to faster fiber-optic components.

by market cap)                        
Ticker   Company name Mkt Cap (USD)▼

1. CSCO   Cisco Systems 231.294B; San Jose, California; sells routers, switches and security services as well as software products
2. MRVL  Marvell Technology  58.618B; Santa Clara, California
3. CIEN  Ciena   9.331B; A Hanover, Maryland–based leader in high-speed networking systems and coherent optical transport. They are a direct beneficiary of hyperscalers upgrading their network connectivity to handle massive AI data loads.
4. IIVI  II-VI Inc.  6.637B; Pennsylvania
5. LITE  Lumentum Holdings  6.273B  California-based (Lumentum was spun off from JDS Uniphase in 8/2015). A leading manufacturer of optical components, transceivers, and lasers. 
6. VIAV  Viavi Solutions  3.52B; California
7. ADTN   ADTRAN  992M; Alabama
8. NPTN  NeoPhotonics   809.93M; California
9. AAOI  Applied Optoelectronics  161.33M; Texas-based; design and manufacture optical modules and transceivers for data centers and cable broadband markets. 
10. LPTH  LightPath Technologies  52.91M; Florida
11. GLW  Corning; specialized optical fiber, cables, and display technologies. Supplies a significant portion of the physical hardware required for modern AI and cloud data center buildouts.
12. MTSI  MACOM Technology Solutions; Develops semiconductor products for optical, wireless, and satellite networks, specializing in the lasers and drivers that power optical systems.
13. AVGO  Broadcom : A massive semiconductor and infrastructure software company heavily engaged in co-packaged optics (CPO) and optical switch ASICs, making them a driving force in the future of data center hardware.
14. CRDO  Credo Technology Group; Specializes in high-speed optical connectivity solutions and transceivers, widely used in modern AI data centers.

                                                                  

   Aeva Technologies                                                        

   Lumentum Holdings                                                      

                                      

   Hesai Group                                                               

   Ouster                                                                  

   Tower Semiconductor                                                      

   Marvell Technology                                            

   Nvidia                                                                  

   FormFactor                                                

   Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing       

   Ultra Clean Holdings                                          

   nLight              

ETF

• EUV - Corgi Funds launched the Corgi Lithography & Semiconductor Photonics ETF EUV, which is actively managed so that at least 80% of its portfolio will be invested in companies that are "materially involved in the development, deployment and operation of photonics and light-based technologies, including extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography and related semiconductor manufacturing and inspection tools

finviz charts:  (vol) https://finviz.com/screener.ashx?v=211&ta=0&o=-volume&t=CSCO,MRVL,CIEN,IIVI,LITE,VIAV,INFN,ADTN,NPTN,AAOI,LPTH,

charts - avg vol (3 months): 

          

Acquisitions

• Infinera (Nasdaq: INFN) was acquired by Nokia (NOK) for approx. $2.3 billion. (2025)
• NeoPhotonics (NPTN) to be acquired by Lumentum (LITE) for approx. $918 mln. (Nov 2021)
• Acacia Communications (ACIA) (Massachusetts) was acquired by Cisco Systems (CSCO) for $4.5 billion. (Jan 2021)
• Coherent (COHR) acquired by Lumentum (LITE) (Jan 2021)
• Finisar (FNSR) acquired by II-VI (IIVI) (Nov 2018)
• Oclaro (OCLR) acquired by Lumentum (LITE)  (Feb 2018)
• ClariPhy acquired by Inphi (IPHI) (Dec 2016).  Inphi (IPHI) (California) acquired by Marvell Technology (NASDAQ: MRVL) for $8.2 billion (October 2020).

©Artremis (EAS 11/30/21)

Emerging Integrated Photonics Solutions

Light Detection & Ranging (LiDAR)

LiDAR technology uses focused light beams to generate a representation of the environment. LiDAR calculates distances with great accuracy and finds applications ranging from aerial inspection and crop mapping to autonomous vehicles. Startups are innovating to bring together the latest developments in LiDAR in a single chip to make the technology more affordable.

Silicon Photonics

Silicon photonics use silicon as an optical medium and need less energy to transmit data faster compared to other communication technologies. Since silicon photonics use optical rays for data transfer, they commonly find applications in solutions that have both optical and computational functions. 

Fiber Optic Sensor

Optical interrogators use fibers to monitor industrial assets via a network of sensors in real-time. However, optical fibers are prohibitively expensive and hard to maintain, limiting their use to high-end applications or extremely crucial operations. As integrated photonics-based solutions lower the cost of interrogators, they are expanding the scope of fiber optic sensors to new markets.

Photonic Microsensors

Medical diagnostics startups usually use light-based solutions such as spectroscopy, microscopy, or visual inspection to generate their results. By combining light detection with signal processing in a single device, integrated photonics-based solutions enable rapid and highly sensitive detection of biomolecules. Moreover, the benefits of photonic microsensors include miniaturization, amenability to multiplexing, and low-cost mass production.

JDS Uniphase (JDSU) Post-Bubble Plunge Leads to Split

• JDS Uniphase (JDSU) was a prominent high-tech manufacturer specializing in optical fiber communications and laser technology. Once a darling of the late 90s dot-com boom with a valuation over $125 billion, the company officially dissolved in 2015 by splitting into two independent publicly traded entities: Viavi Solutions (NASDAQ: VIAV) and Lumentum Holdings (NASDAQ: LITE).

JDS Uniphase Corp.’s plan to break in two is designed to lift the value of a company that never recovered from the bursting of a 1990s bubble in Internet-related stocks.

 

The producer of fiber-optic components and networking equipment began as Uniphase Corp. and changed its name after buying JDS Fitel Inc. for $7.05 billion of stock in July 1999.

 

stock performance of JDS Uniphase since its initial public offering in November 1993.

Shares of JDS Uniphase jumped more than 600-fold from the IPO price through March 2000, when they peaked with the Nasdaq Composite Index, and plunged during the subsequent bear market. Although the Nasdaq closed yesterday within 10 percent of its record, the comparable gap for the Milpitas, California-based company’s stock was 99 percent.

Splitting the optical and networking units into separate, publicly traded companies, which JDS Uniphase proposed two days ago, may do relatively little to narrow the stock’s differential if analyst projections are any guide.

JDS Uniphase has “long-term potential” to reach $40 a share, Mark Sue, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets, wrote in a report yesterday. Sue increased his 12-month price estimate for the stock by 64 percent to $18, the highest among 14 analysts in a Bloomberg survey. The New York-based analyst also lifted his rating to the equivalent of buy from hold.

Even if JDS Uniphase advances to $40, the shares would be 97 percent below their peak. They changed hands for as much as $1,227.375 after adjusting for a 1-for-8 reverse stock split, completed in October 2006.