Laser Focus World is an industry bedrock—first published in 1965 and still going strong. We publish original articles about cutting-edge advances in lasers, optics, photonics, sensors, and quantum technologies, as well as test and measurement, and the shift currently underway to usher in the photonic integrated circuits, optical interconnects, and copackaged electronics and photonics to deliver the speed and efficiency essential for data centers of the future.

Our 80,000 qualified print subscribers—and 130,000 12-month engaged online audience—trust us to dive in and provide original journalism you won’t find elsewhere covering key emerging areas such as laser-driven inertial confinement fusion, lasers in space, integrated photonics, chipscale lasers, LiDAR, metasurfaces, high-energy laser weaponry, photonic crystals, and quantum computing/sensors/communications. We cover the innovations driving these markets.

Laser Focus World is part of Endeavor Business Media, a division of EndeavorB2B.

Laser Focus World Membership

Never miss any articles, videos, podcasts, or webinars by signing up for membership access to Laser Focus World online. You can manage your preferences all in one place—and provide our editorial team with your valued feedback.

Magazine Subscription

Can you subscribe to receive our print issue for free? Yes, you sure can!

Newsletter Subscription

Laser Focus World newsletter subscription is free to qualified professionals:

The Daily Beam

Showcases the newest content from Laser Focus World, including photonics- and optics-based applications, components, research, and trends. (Daily)

Product Watch

The latest in products within the photonics industry. (9x per year)

Bio & Life Sciences Product Watch

The latest in products within the biophotonics industry. (4x per year)

Laser Processing Product Watch

The latest in products within the laser processing industry. (3x per year)

Get Published!

If you’d like to write an article for us, reach out with a short pitch to Sally Cole Johnson: [email protected]. We love to hear from you.

Photonics Hot List

Laser Focus World produces a video newscast that gives a peek into what’s happening in the world of photonics.

Following the Photons: A Photonics Podcast

Following the Photons: A Photonics Podcast dives deep into the fascinating world of photonics. Our weekly episodes feature interviews and discussions with industry and research experts, providing valuable perspectives on the issues, technologies, and trends shaping the photonics community.

Editorial Advisory Board

  • Professor Andrea M. Armani, University of Southern California
  • Ruti Ben-Shlomi, Ph.D., LightSolver
  • James Butler, Ph.D., Hamamatsu
  • Natalie Fardian-Melamed, Ph.D., Columbia University
  • Justin Sigley, Ph.D., AmeriCOM
  • Professor Birgit Stiller, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, and Leibniz University of Hannover
  • Professor Stephen Sweeney, University of Glasgow
  • Mohan Wang, Ph.D., University of Oxford
  • Professor Xuchen Wang, Harbin Engineering University
  • Professor Stefan Witte, Delft University of Technology

The 10 Stocks MarketBeat Readers Like Best

MarketBeat has many tools to help investors find great investments, and 1 of them is the Trending Stocks List. The trending stocks list can be tuned to different periods but tracks the same data: the net number of new followers for stocks on Marketbeat. That may seem like a simple statistic but don’t be fooled.

The data tracks sentiment among retail investors and is a valuable source of trading information. Retail investors make up a large portion of the market and are influential in the direction of stock prices. When they move into a market, there’s a good chance it will move higher. If the analysts and institutions are also buying, the stock price could move significantly higher. 

The Market Still Has FAANGs, +Microsoft

The top 4 followed stocks for the 1st week of August on MarketBeat are no surprise. The ranking from 1st to 4th is Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT), Meta (NASDAQ: META), and Google (NASDAQ: GOOG), representing half of the FAANG+ market. These stocks are also the most followed over the last 90 days, suggesting momentum in their respective markets.

While the stories vary from name to name, the underlying theme with these stocks is that cloud and consumer-driven businesses are solid and compounded by repositioning and efficiencies that are driving bottom-line results. AI is also a central theme, with infrastructure at the story's core. 

These companies are foundational to the AI revolution; their results will show it. META isn’t the only or even the most obvious example of how AI impacts business, but its 7% boost in engagement driven by AI is a telling sign. The analysts also like them, which is another tailwind for their markets. All but 1 are in the top 10 Most Upgraded Stocks, and the outlier, Apple, is in 11th. 

Faang stocks

Tesla Is The 5th Most-Followed Stock On MarketBeat

It’s a little surprising that Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) is not in the top 5 Most Followed Stocks, but it isn’t surprising to find Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) in that position. Given the analysts ' activity, the company produced a solid beat with its 2Q results and will likely trend higher.

The analysts' consensus target is lagging the price action and weighing on the rally now but trending solidly higher. The most recent activity includes a single downgrade to Neutral. Still, it came with a price target increase that has the market fairly valued at $270 or above the recent action, and many of the newest targets are well above that level.

Regarding the business, the near-term headwind is the margin. Margin contracted YOY but resulted in a jump in sales that could gain momentum. The guidance was a little weak, only as expected, but may also be considered cautious given the jump in sales and the company’s track record of outperformance. 

Tesla Stock chart

AMC Entertainment Gets MarketBeat Readers’ Attention

AMC Entertainment (NYSE: AMC) has caught the eye of MarketBeat readers and sits in the 6th position. The rise in interest is largely due to “Barbenheimer,” which is driving an expectation for outperformance this quarter. The risk here is that neither the analysts nor the institutions are buying, and the short interest is relatively high. 

Interesting Opportunities In Positions 7 Through 10 

The final 4 in this countdown include interesting names like NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA), Amazon, NIO (NYSE: NIO), and  AMD (NASDAQ: AMD). NVIDIA and AMD are being driven by AI interest, demand for their highest-performance chips, and the long-term outlook for AI, which is robust.

NVIDIA is the 6th most followed stock and up 1 spot compared to the 90-day data. AMD is also up 1 position to #10, which shows growing momentum for these AI-powered names.

Amazon is down from #7 to #8 but still solidly in the top 10. It’s driven by strength in AWS, core business, and the new CEO’s attention to detail. NIO, like Tesla, is supported by a ramp in production and deliveries; it produced a triple-digit increase for July and is supported by strength in its home market.

Likewise, Tesla reported a triple-digit gain in China for July, and it could have been higher if not for a scheduled shutdown. 

Nio stock chart

Stock Quote API & Stock News API supplied by www.cloudquote.io
Quotes delayed at least 20 minutes.
By accessing this page, you agree to the following
Privacy Policy and Terms Of Service.