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

1 Small-Cap Stock for Long-Term Investors and 2 We Turn Down

OLLI Cover Image

Small-cap stocks can be incredibly lucrative investments because their lack of analyst coverage leads to frequent mispricings. However, these businesses (and their stock prices) often stay small because their subscale operations make it harder to expand their competitive moats.

Luckily for you, our mission at StockStory is to help you make money and avoid losses by sorting the winners from the losers. That said, here is one small-cap stock that could be the next big thing and two best left ignored.

Two Small-Cap Stocks to Sell:

Caleres (CAL)

Market Cap: $468.8 million

The owner of Dr. Scholl's, Caleres (NYSE: CAL) is a footwear company offering a range of styles.

Why Do We Avoid CAL?

  1. Annual sales declines of 3.8% for the past two years show its products and services struggled to connect with the market
  2. Sales are projected to be flat over the next 12 months and imply weak demand
  3. Waning returns on capital from an already weak starting point displays the inefficacy of management’s past and current investment decisions

Caleres is trading at $13.87 per share, or 4.5x forward P/E. Check out our free in-depth research report to learn more about why CAL doesn’t pass our bar.

Graphic Packaging Holding (GPK)

Market Cap: $6.51 billion

Founded in 1991, Graphic Packaging (NYSE: GPK) is a provider of paper-based packaging solutions for a wide range of products.

Why Should You Dump GPK?

  1. Declining unit sales over the past two years imply it may need to invest in improvements to get back on track
  2. Earnings per share have dipped by 10.4% annually over the past two years, which is concerning because stock prices follow EPS over the long term
  3. Free cash flow margin dropped by 8.9 percentage points over the last five years, implying the company became more capital intensive as competition picked up

At $21.89 per share, Graphic Packaging Holding trades at 10.1x forward P/E. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than GPK.

One Small-Cap Stock to Watch:

Ollie's (OLLI)

Market Cap: $8.60 billion

Often located in suburban or semi-rural shopping centers, Ollie’s Bargain Outlet (NASDAQ: OLLI) is a discount retailer that acquires excess inventory then sells at meaningful discounts.

Why Do We Watch OLLI?

  1. Rapid rollout of new stores to capitalize on market opportunities makes sense given its strong same-store sales performance
  2. Locations open for at least a year are seeing increased demand as same-store sales have averaged 4.1% growth over the past two years
  3. Demand for the next 12 months is expected to accelerate above its six-year trend as Wall Street forecasts robust revenue growth of 14.1%

Ollie’s stock price of $141.29 implies a valuation ratio of 36.4x forward P/E. Is now the time to initiate a position? Find out in our full research report, it’s free.

Stocks We Like Even More

Donald Trump’s April 2025 "Liberation Day" tariffs sent markets into a tailspin, but stocks have since rebounded strongly, proving that knee-jerk reactions often create the best buying opportunities.

The smart money is already positioning for the next leg up. Don’t miss out on the recovery - check out our Top 5 Strong Momentum Stocks for this week. 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.

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.

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.