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Juniper (JNPR) Solutions Boost Sparkle's Network Capabilities

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Juniper Networks, Inc. (JNPR - Free Report) recently inked an agreement with Sparkle for an undisclosed amount to augment the latter’s network capabilities to cater to the exponential growth in customers and related data demands. The improvement in infrastructure facilities is expected to reduce the complexity of the network while increasing operational flexibility and efficiency with a better economy of scale.

With a direct presence in 32 countries and commercial coverage on a global scale, Sparkle is a leading broadband service provider, offering a full range of ICT solutions, global connectivity, services and capabilities to ISPs and content providers worldwide. It owns an advanced proprietary network of more than 600,000 km of fiber, including major regional systems in Europe, the Mediterranean and the Americas, along with ownership in major international submarine cables. Consequently, it requires a cost-effective network ecosystem for the creation and consumption of global communication solutions.

This is where Juniper routing solutions come to the fore by effectively helping Sparkle to reduce space and power consumption in its core network platform. Its 400G connections are easier to manage with fewer overall ports and deliver a lower cost-per-bit by offering the same bandwidth in less physical space. The simplified network traffic management from Juniper eradicates the complexity associated with multiple networks and delivers optimal bandwidth utilization. With the latest routing platforms, the company aims to significantly improve the network for more agile service delivery and better security features for enhanced visibility and customer data protection. This is expected to provide shorter time-to-market for new services while ensuring regulatory compliance and data security.

Segment routing simplifies operations and reduces resource requirements in the network by removing network state information from intermediate routers and placing path information into packet headers at the ingress node. This improves operational flexibility and agility for cost-effective user experiences as fewer network elements are involved, avoiding slow response to sudden network changes.

Juniper is set to capitalize on the growing demand for data center virtualization, cloud computing and mobile traffic packet/optical convergence. The company is offering new suites of products, such as the T4000 core router, QFX data center platform, ACX and PTX packet/optical solution, among others. With the growing use of smartphones and tablets, mobile data traffic has gone up. This has resulted in higher demand for advanced networking architecture, leading service providers to spend more on routers and switches. Juniper is expected to benefit from the higher spending pattern among carriers to upgrade their networks for supporting the incremental growth in data traffic.

Despite short-term challenges, particularly within the cloud and service provider verticals, Juniper expects healthy progress in most areas of its business, which augurs well for its long-term growth. The company has made significant changes to its go-to-market structure to better align its sales strategies with each of its core customer verticals. Moreover, several new products are in the pipeline, which are expected to further strengthen its competitive position across service provider, cloud and enterprise markets.

The stock has gained 42.3% over the past year compared with the industry’s rally of 7.9%.

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Juniper currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Clearfield, Inc. (CLFD - Free Report) , sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) is a solid pick for investors. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Clearfield delivered an earnings surprise of 50.7%, on average, in the trailing four quarters. Earnings estimates for the current year for the stock have moved up 102.7% since February 2021. Over the past year, Clearfield has gained a solid 80.2%.

Qualcomm Incorporated (QCOM - Free Report) , carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) is another key pick. It has a long-term earnings growth expectation of 16.1% and delivered an earnings surprise of 12.2%, on average, in the trailing four quarters.

Earnings estimates for the current year for the stock have moved up 43.1% over the past year, while that for the next fiscal is up 48.6%. Qualcomm is likely to benefit in the long run from solid 5G traction and a surge in demand for essential products that are the building blocks of digital transformation in the cloud economy.

Knowles Corporation (KN - Free Report) sports a Zacks Rank #1. It has a long-term earnings growth expectation of 10% and delivered a modest earnings surprise of 14.9%, on average, in the trailing four quarters. Earnings estimates for the current year have moved up 21% since February 2021.

The transformation from an acoustic component supplier to an audio solutions provider has enabled Knowles to migrate to higher-value solutions and increase content per device. This, in turn, has empowered the company to capitalize on the positive macro trends in audio and edge processing solutions.

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