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.

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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

1 Software Stock for Long-Term Investors and 2 We Find Risky

DOCU Cover Image

Software is rapidly reducing operating expenses for businesses. Companies bringing it to life have been rewarded with high valuation multiples that make fundraising easier, but they have weighed on the returns lately as the industry has pulled back by 11.5% over the past six months. This drop is a far cry from the S&P 500’s 5.2% ascent.

Investors should tread carefully as only some businesses are worthy of their valuations, and luckily for you, we started StockStory to help you find them. With that said, here is one resilient software stock at the top of our wish list and two we’re passing on.

Two Software Stocks to Sell:

DocuSign (DOCU)

Market Cap: $14.33 billion

Creating the digital equivalent of "sign on the dotted line" for over a billion users worldwide, DocuSign (NASDAQ: DOCU) provides an agreement management platform that enables businesses to electronically prepare, sign, and manage documents and contracts.

Why Is DOCU Not Exciting?

  1. Annual revenue growth of 10.8% over the last three years was below our standards for the software sector
  2. Customers had second thoughts about committing to its platform over the last year as its average billings growth of 6.4% underwhelmed
  3. Estimated sales growth of 5.9% for the next 12 months implies demand will slow from its three-year trend

At $70.99 per share, DocuSign trades at 4.7x forward price-to-sales. Read our free research report to see why you should think twice about including DOCU in your portfolio.

Sprinklr (CXM)

Market Cap: $2.14 billion

With a proprietary AI engine processing 450 million data points daily across 30+ digital channels, Sprinklr (NYSE: CXM) provides cloud-based software that helps large enterprises manage customer experiences across social, messaging, chat, and voice channels.

Why Are We Out on CXM?

  1. Average billings growth of 4% over the last year was subpar, suggesting it struggled to push its software and might have to lower prices to stimulate demand
  2. Estimated sales growth of 3.4% for the next 12 months implies demand will slow from its three-year trend
  3. Efficiency has decreased over the last year as its operating margin fell by 3.6 percentage points

Sprinklr’s stock price of $8.25 implies a valuation ratio of 2.5x forward price-to-sales. If you’re considering CXM for your portfolio, see our FREE research report to learn more.

One Software Stock to Watch:

Veeva Systems (VEEV)

Market Cap: $45.86 billion

Originally named "Verticals onDemand" before rebranding in 2009, Veeva Systems (NYSE: VEEV) provides cloud software, data solutions, and consulting services that help life sciences companies develop and bring products to market more efficiently.

Why Should VEEV Be on Your Watchlist?

  1. Billings have averaged 15.5% growth over the last year, showing it’s securing new contracts that could potentially increase in value over time
  2. Excellent operating margin of 27% highlights the efficiency of its business model, and it turbocharged its profits by achieving some fixed cost leverage
  3. Robust free cash flow margin of 41.5% gives it many options for capital deployment

Veeva Systems is trading at $283 per share, or 14.7x forward price-to-sales. Is now the time to initiate a position? Find out in our full research report, it’s free.

Stocks We Like Even More

Trump’s April 2025 tariff bombshell triggered a massive market selloff, but stocks have since staged an impressive recovery, leaving those who panic sold on the sidelines.

Take advantage of the rebound by checking out our Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 183% over the last five years (as of March 31st 2025).

Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,545% between March 2020 and March 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-micro-cap company Kadant (+351% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today for free. Find your next big winner with StockStory today. Find your next big winner with StockStory today

StockStory is growing and hiring equity analyst and marketing roles. Are you a 0 to 1 builder passionate about the markets and AI? See the open roles here.

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