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.

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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

3 Small-Cap Stocks Walking a Fine Line

EGHT 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.

These trade-offs can cause headaches for even the most seasoned professionals, which is why we started StockStory - to help you separate the good companies from the bad. Keeping that in mind, here are three small-cap stocks to swipe left on and some alternatives you should look into instead.

8x8 (EGHT)

Market Cap: $282.3 million

Named after its founding year (1987) with "8x8" representing binary code for communications, 8x8 (NASDAQ: EGHT) provides cloud-based contact center and unified communications solutions that enable businesses to manage customer interactions and internal communications through a single platform.

Why Do We Steer Clear of EGHT?

  1. Offerings struggled to generate meaningful interest as its average billings growth of 1.3% over the last year did not impress
  2. Sales are projected to remain flat over the next 12 months as demand decelerates from its three-year trend
  3. Extended payback periods on sales investments suggest the company’s platform isn’t resonating enough to drive efficient sales conversions

At $2.03 per share, 8x8 trades at 0.4x forward price-to-sales. Check out our free in-depth research report to learn more about why EGHT doesn’t pass our bar.

CSG (CSGS)

Market Cap: $1.78 billion

Powering billions of critical customer interactions annually, CSG Systems (NASDAQ: CSGS) provides cloud-based software platforms that help companies manage customer interactions, process payments, and monetize their services.

Why Is CSGS Risky?

  1. Annual revenue growth of 2.6% over the last two years was below our standards for the business services sector
  2. Revenue base of $1.21 billion puts it at a disadvantage compared to larger competitors exhibiting economies of scale
  3. Waning returns on capital from an already weak starting point displays the inefficacy of management’s past and current investment decisions

CSG is trading at $64.81 per share, or 13.2x forward P/E. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than CSGS.

AvidXchange (AVDX)

Market Cap: $2.06 billion

Born from the frustration of paper-based accounting processes in the early 2000s, AvidXchange (NASDAQ: AVDX) provides accounts payable automation software and payment solutions that help middle-market businesses digitize and streamline their invoice processing and payments.

Why Is AVDX Not Exciting?

  1. Negative return on equity shows that some of its growth strategies have backfired

AvidXchange’s stock price of $9.92 implies a valuation ratio of 36.1x forward P/E. Check out our free in-depth research report to learn more about why AVDX doesn’t pass our bar.

High-Quality Stocks for All Market Conditions

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 Tecnoglass (+1,754% 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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