Hot Communications Equipment Stocks To Watch For 2014

This series, brought to you by Yahoo! Finance, looks at which upgrades and downgrades make sense, and which ones investors should act on. Today, our headlines feature a pair of downgrades for document storage company Iron Mountain (NYSE: IRM  ) and insulin treatments-equipment maker Insulet (NASDAQ: PODD  ) . But the headlines aren't all bad, so before we break the bad news to you, let's start off on a bright note about...

Ciena's banner quarter
Telecommunications equipment maker Ciena (NASDAQ: CIEN  ) stunned the skeptics Thursday with a surprisingly profitable Q2 earnings report. Expected to lose a penny a share, Ciena instead reported a $0.02 profit -- and it beat on revenues, too.

Needless to say, Wall Street liked the report, and this morning, two analysts are hiking their expectations for the stock. Japan's Nomura Securities is positing a $23 share price a year from now, impressed that "revenues finally beat expectations ��expectations that were already at the high end of guidance." Nomura's also pleased to see that "the mid-point of Q3 guidance is 4% ahead of prior expectations and the high end of guidance 7% ahead." Needham, meanwhile, points to calendar year 2013 guidance of $0.51 per share, and a potential double to $1 a share in profit in 2014, as justifying its own price target hike to $22.

Hot International Companies To Watch In Right Now: TomTom NV (TMOAF.PK)

TomTom NV is the Netherlands-based supplier of location and navigation products and services. The Company�� offer includes maps, speed cameras, portable navigation devices (PND), fleet management services (FMS), and smart phone applications. It consists of four customer-facing segments: Consumer, Automotive, Business Solutions and Licensing. The Consumer segment is engaged in the sale of PNDs, speed cameras, maps and other related navigation services to end customers. Automotive sells in-dash navigation solutions, speed cameras, grade maps and services to companies in automotive segment, as well as PNDs for fitness products. The Business solutions segment provides fleet management services and solutions, such as fleet trackers, to fleet owners. Licensing sells digital maps, mobile applications and other content to customers within multiple market segments. The Company operates in over 35 countries worldwide. In July 2013, it acquired Coordina (Gestion Electronica Logistica, S.L.). Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Genesis Housing]

  Nokia's HERE division is worth E1bn assuming a similar market cap as TomTom (TMOAF.PK) but offers significant upside as maps become the next platform for e-commerce. Assuming Nokia's net cash position declines to E2bn at Q3 from E4.1bn in Q2 (given the E1.7bn NSN deal as well as incremental cash burn due to supporting product launches), the combined value of Nokia's Net Cash, HERE division and NSN division is in line with the current market cap of Nokia.

Hot Communications Equipment Stocks To Watch For 2014: Audience Inc (ADNC)

Audience, Inc., incorporated on May 24, 2011, is a provider of voice and audio solutions that improve voice quality and the user experience in mobile devices. The Company�� solutions include hardware-accelerated digital signal processors (DSPs), and audio codecs and associated algorithms for noise suppression in mobile devices. Its computational auditory scene analysis (CASA) maps the sound separation functions in human hearing, into a computational framework. The Company�� platform consists of its DSPs and audio codec, analog and mixed signal circuits and algorithms for voice isolation and noise suppression.

The Company also provides its AuViD graphical design tools to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). The Company had sold over 250 million processors to its OEM customers as of December 31, 2012. In addition to the mobile device market, the Company�� voice and audio technology is also applicable to a range of other market segments, including automobile infotainment systems, digital cameras, digital televisions, headsets and set top boxes.

The Company�� product portfolio supports both analog and digital interfaces. As of December 31, 2012, the Company offered eS515, eS325, eS305, eS310, eS110, A1028 and A1026 custom voice and audio processors for device platforms, including smartphones, feature phones and media tablets. eS515 is a third generation voice and audio processor with an integrated audio codec, featuring support of three-microphones; eS325is a third generation voice and audio processor that features simultaneous three microphone processing; eS305 is a second generation voice and audio processor utilizing new hardware acceleration architecture and algorithms for far-field, wideband communications and capable of advanced speech recognition assist, and uses an all digital interface; eS310, provides similar capabilities to the eS305; eS110 is a first generation narrowband voice processor designed for real-time communications and far-field as well as near-field u! se with features such as acoustic echo cancelation, voice equalization and automatic gain control; A1026, is a first generation narrowband voice processor designed for real-time communications and typical near-field use, and A1028, which is a first generation narrowband voice processor designed for real-time communications and far-field, as well as near-field use.

The Company derives its revenue primarily from the sale of voice and audio processors to OEMs, which incorporate them into mobile devices. As of December 31, 2012, OEMs, CMs and distributors worldwide had purchased more than 250 million of its processors and incorporated them in over 140 mobile device models.

The Company competes with Maxim, ON Semiconductor, Qualcomm, Texas Instruments Incorporated, Wolfson Microelectronics plc, DSP Group, Inc. and Yamaha Corporation.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Calling all cash flows
  When you are trying to buy the market's best stocks, it's worth checking up on your companies' free cash flow once a quarter or so, to see whether it bears any relationship to the net income in the headlines. That's what we do with this series. Today, we're checking in on Audience (Nasdaq: ADNC  ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.

Hot Communications Equipment Stocks To Watch For 2014: Zoom Technologies Inc (ZOOM)

Zoom Technologies, Inc. (Zoom), incorporated on February 29, 2002, is engaged in design, production, marketing, sales, and support of broadband and dial-up modems, voice over Internet Protocol or (VoIP) products and services, Bluetooth wireless products, and other communication-related products. The Company through its wholly owned holding-company subsidiary, Gold Lion Holding Limited (Gold Lion) is the owner of 100% of Profit Harvest Corporation Ltd. (Profit Harvest) and through Gold Lion's wholly owned subsidiary, Jiangsu Leimone Electronics Co., Ltd. (Jiangsu Leimone) is the owner of 80% of Tianjin Tong Guang Group Digital Communication Co., Ltd. (TCB Digital). The Company through its subsidiaries is engaged in manufacturing, research and development, and sales of electronic and telecommunication products for the latest generation mobile phones, wireless communication circuitry, and related software products. On January 4, 2011, the Company acquired 100% ownership of Celestial Digital Entertainment, Ltd., (CDE). During the year ended December 31, 2011, the Company acquired 55% of Portables.

TCB Digital is engaged in electronic and telecommunication product design, development, and manufacturing for original equipment manufacturers (OEM) customers and for its own products under the brand name of Leimone. The Company offers electronic manufacturing service (EMS) to both domestic and global customers including Samsung, Beijing Tianyu Langtong, CECT, Danahar and Spreadtrum. Its primary products include mobile phones, wireless telecommunication modules, digital cameras, cable television (TV) set-top boxes and global positioning system ( GPS) equipment.

The Company has developed mobile phones and Smartphones based on both of the main network technologies: Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), and Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), and beginning in 2010 also 3G CDMA2000 capable products. As of December 31, 2011, the Company markets its mobile phone products through di! stributors in China and also supplies GSM, CDMA and 3G CDMA2000 mobile phones to customers, including one of China's main mobile operators, China Telecom. The Company through its Portables subsidiary operates a wholesale distributor business for T-Mobile products and services in the United States. The Company also has the right to sell branded mobile handsets including those carrying the Zoom brand name and related peripherals in the retail stores managed by Portables under the agreement with T-Mobile.

The Company competes with Bird Ningbo Co., Ltd, Haier Telecom Co. Ltd., Konka Group Co., Ltd, Lenovo Group Limited, TCL Communication Technology Holdings Limited, LG Electronics Ltd., Motorola Inc., Nokia Corporation, Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., and Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications (China) Co., Ltd.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Lauren Pollock]

  Shares of Zoom Technologies Inc.(ZOOM) soared� 37% to $5.90 after the Chinese mobile and telecommunications investor inked an all-stock deal to acquire an online business travel provider.

Hot Communications Equipment Stocks To Watch For 2014: Cisco Systems Inc (CSCO)

Cisco Systems, Inc., incorporated on December 10, 1984, designs, manufactures, and sells Internet protocol (IP)-based networking and other products related to the communications and information technology (IT) industry and provide services associated with these products and their use. The Company provides a line of products for transporting data, voice, and video within buildings, across campuses, and around the world. Its products are designed to transform how people connect, communicate, and collaborate. Its products are installed at enterprise businesses, public institutions, telecommunications companies, commercial businesses, and personal residences. The Company has five segments: United States and Canada, European Markets, Emerging Markets, Asia Pacific, and Japan. The Emerging Markets theater consists of Eastern Europe, Latin America, the Middle East and Africa, and Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States. In July 30, 2012, it acquired NDS Group Ltd. In October 2012, it acquired virtual networking company, vCider. In August 2011, the Company acquired Versly. In November 2011, it acquired BNI Video. In March 2012, the Company acquired Lightwire, Inc. In May 2012, the Company acquired ClearAccess. In December 2012, the Company acquired Cloupia. In December 2012, the Company acquired Cariden Technologies Inc. In December 2012, the Company acquired Meraki, Inc.

The Company�� product offerings fall into three categories: its core technologies, routing and switching; advanced technologies, and other products. In addition to its product offerings, the Company provides a range of service offerings, technical support services and advanced services. The advanced services program supports networking devices, applications, solutions, and complete infrastructures.

Routing

The Company offers a range of routers, from core network infrastructure for service providers and enterprises to access routers for branch offices and for telecommuters and consumers at ho! me. Key products within its routing category are the Cisco ASR 901/903, Cisco 1000, 5000, and 9000 Cisco Aggregation Services Routers (ASR), as well as the Cisco ASR 800, 1900, 2900 and 3900 Cisco Integrated Services Routers (ISR):; Cisco CRS-1, 7600 and Cisco CRS-3 Cisco Carrier Routing Systems (CRS). During the fiscal year ended July 31, 2010 (fiscal 2010), Cisco introduced the Cisco CRS-3 Carrier Routing System (CRS-3) and Cisco 7600 Series Routers.

Service Provider Video

The Company�� end-to-end, digital video distribution systems and digital interactive set-top boxes enable service providers and content originators to deliver entertainment, information, and communication services to consumers and businesses around the world. Key product areas within its Service Provider Video category are: Set-Top Boxes, IP set-top boxes (both High-Definition (HD) and Standard Definition (SD)); Digital cable set-top boxes (both HD and SD); Cable Modem CPE (Data, EMTA, and Gateways); Videoscape Software Products and Headend Equipment (Encoders, Decoders, and Transcoders).

Switching

The Company�� switching products offer many forms of connectivity to end users, workstations, IP phones, access points, and servers, and also function as aggregators on local-area networks (LANs), metropolitan-area networks (MANs), and wide-area networks (WANs). Its switching systems employ several widely used technologies, including Ethernet, Power over Ethernet, Fibre Channel over Ethernet, Packet over Synchronous Optical Network, and Multiprotocol Label Switching. Many of its switches are designed to support an integrated set of advanced services, allowing organizations to be more efficient by using one switch for multiple networking functions rather than multiple switches to accomplish the same functions.

Cisco offers a family of Ethernet switching solutions from fixed-configuration switches for small and medium-sized businesses to modular switches for enterprise! s and ser! vice providers. Its fixed-configuration switches are designed to provide a foundation for converged data, voice, and video services. Key products within its switching category are the Cisco Catalyst 2960, 3560, 3750, 4500 and 6500 Series; the Cisco Nexus 2000, 3000, 5000 and 7000 Series switches; and MDS Series: MDS 9000.

Fixed-configuration switches are designed to cover a range of deployments in small and medium-sized businesses. It fixed-configuration switches are designed to provide a foundation for converged data, voice, and video services. They range from small, standalone switches to stackable models that function as a single, scalable switching unit. Modular switches are typically utilized by enterprise and service provider customers. Fixed-configuration and modular switches also include products such as optics modules which are shared across multiple product platforms.

NGN Routing

Routing technology is fundamental to the Internet, and this technology interconnects public and private IP networks for mobile, data, voice, and video applications. The Company's NGN Routing products are designed to enhance the intelligence, security, reliability, scalability, and level of performance in the transmission of information and media-rich applications. It offers a broad range of routers, from core network infrastructure and mobile Internet network for service providers and enterprises to access routers for branch offices and for telecommuters and consumers at home. Key product areas within its NGN Routing category are, Cisco Aggregation Services Routers: Cisco ASR 901/903, Cisco ASR 1000, Cisco ASR 5000 and Cisco ASR 9000. Cisco Integrated Services Routers: Cisco ISR 800, Cisco ISR 1900, Cisco ISR 2900 and Cisco ISR 3900. Cisco Carrier Routing Systems: Cisco CRS-1, Cisco CRS-3 and Cisco 7600 Series Routers.

Security

Cisco security solutions deliver identity, network and content security solutions designed to enable customers to reduce the ! impact of! threats and realize the benefits of a mobile, collaborative, and cloud-enabled business. The products in this category span firewall, intrusion prevention, remote access, virtual private networks (VPNs), unified clients, network admission control, Web gateways, and email gateways. Its AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client solution enables users to access networks with their mobile device of choice, including laptops and smartphone-based mobile devices, while allowing organizations to manage the security risks of networks. Its cloud-based Web security service is designed to provide real-time threat protection and to prevent malware from reaching corporate networks, including roaming or mobile users. It focuses on a proactive, layered approach to counter both existing and emerging security threats. During the fiscal year ended July 28, 2012, it introduced the Cisco ASA 5500-X Series Midrange Security Appliance, Cisco Security Manager 4.3, the IPS 4500 Series, and Prime Security Manager.

Wireless

The Cisco Unified Wireless Network aims to harness the network to solve business problems, uniting high-performance wireless access across campus, branch, remote and outdoor environments. Its offerings include wireless access points (including the Cisco Aironet product family), controllers, antennas, and integrated management. The Company�� offerings provide users with simplified management and mobile device troubleshooting features which are designed to reduce operational cost and maximize flexibility and reliability. It is also investing in custom chipsets to deliver functions such as CleanAir proactive spectrum intelligence, ClientLink acceleration for mobile devices and VideoStream multicast optimization technology.

Data Center

The Company�� data center product category has been its major product category for the past two fiscal years. Cisco Unified Computing System (UCS) and Server Access Virtualization form the core of the Data Center product category.! Key prod! uct areas within its Data Center product category are: Cisco UCS B-Series Blade Servers, Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers and Cisco UCS Fabric Interconnects.

Other Products

The Company�� other products category primarily consists of Linksys home networking products, certain emerging technologies, and other networking products. In addition to its product offerings, it provide a range of service offerings, including technical support services and advanced services.

The Company competes with Alcatel-Lucent; ARRIS Group, Inc.; Aruba Networks, Inc.; Avaya Inc.; Belden Inc.; Brocade Communications Systems, Inc.; Check Point Software Technologies Ltd.; Citrix Systems, Inc.; D-Link Corporation; LM Ericsson Telephone Company; Extreme Networks, Inc.; F5 Networks, Inc.; Force10 Networks, Inc.; Fortinet, Inc.; Hewlett-Packard Company; Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd.; International Business Machines Corporation; Juniper Networks, Inc.; LogMeIn, Inc.; Meru Networks, Inc.; Microsoft Corporation; Motorola, Inc.; NETGEAR, Inc.; Polycom, Inc.; Riverbed Technology, Inc.; and Symantec Corporation.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Yet iRobot has also looked for new business segments for its innovative technology. In health-care, the RP-VITA medical telepresence system got FDA approval in January, and already, the company has done a good job of getting the systems into several hospitals in the U.S. and Mexico. Moreover, iRobot is working with Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO  ) on its Ava 500 telepresence robot, which should help facilitate inter-office meetings in situations involving moving presentations like tours rather than fixed teleconference sites.

• [By Matt Thalman]

  The Nasdaq was likely pulled lower by the IDC report, which indicated that PC sales declined 14% during the first quarter of 2013. This report pulled a number of technology stocks lower, but shares of Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO  ) slipped away from the downward pressure, and managed to become one of the index's top stocks. Shares of the networking giant rose 1% during today's trading session after climbing 2.4% yesterday, and 2% on Tuesday. Today's move came on very little news, but Cisco certainly is gaining momentum. The company also recently announced a joint project with Microsoft, in which the two will work together to provide data center customers with more functionality and lower complexity. In addition, the two will work together to improve and grow data center operations. �