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Harmonic to Expand Cloud & Software Portfolio: Will HLIT Stock Gain?

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Harmonic Inc. (HLIT - Free Report) is poised to expand its portfolio with the latest cloud and software-based innovations aimed at helping broadcasters and service providers boost revenues, enhance viewer experiences and lower video infrastructure costs. 

The advancements span across production and playout, broadcast and distribution, live sports streaming and content monetization, further establishing its dominance in video processing and delivery.

HLIT Focusing on AI Products

At IBC2024, Harmonic will present artificial intelligence (AI)-driven advancements, including VOS360 Ad SaaS for enhanced in-stream advertising, VOS360 Media SaaS for advanced speech-to-text for closed captioning and voice cloning for live commentary translation as well as personalized sports highlights to boost fan engagement.

The company will also highlight advancements aimed at reducing video infrastructure costs for service providers and broadcasters. These include the next-gen XOS and Spectrum X platforms boosting efficiency with 50% more encoding capacity and doubled channel density, and the new playout-to-delivery feature integrating advanced playout, branding and encoding into a unified solution. The AI-driven dynamic frame rate encoding reduces CPU and bandwidth use, while the encoder stress gauge offers real-time insights to maintain video quality.

Moreover, Harmonic is collaborating with top industry players to advance video streaming and broadcast technologies at IBC2024. Through AI advancements with Kebula, Camb.ai, LingoPal, Southworks and Microsoft Azure, Harmonic is enhancing automated clip extraction, voice cloning and personalized live sports streaming. VOS360 Ad SaaS boosts monetization through integrations with castLabs, FreeWheel, Google Ad Manager and RYFF. Collaborations with Microsoft, Google and AWS streamline cloud delivery, whereas content management is optimized with Deltatre, Quickplay and Viaccess-Orca. Furthermore, Harmonic's solutions incorporate advanced watermarking from Irdeto, NAGRA and Viaccess-Orca for enhanced security.

HLIT Seeking to Gain From Healthy Uptake of Solutions

In July 2024, Harmonic announced that its cOS broadband platform was selected by Telecentro, a leading telecommunications operator in Argentina, to modernize its network.  In August 2024, Harmonic partnered with Globo, Brazil's largest media conglomerate, as it transitioned to a cloud-based playout workflow using Harmonic's VOS Media Software. Additionally, its XOS Advanced Media Processor was adopted by Persidera to improve video delivery workflows.

In the second quarter of 2024, the number of global customers deploying COS solutions reached 118, up 20% year over year, with a record number of DOCSIS 4.0 outdoor node shipments. The video segment brought in $45.8 million in revenues, up 6% sequentially, including SaaS revenues of $14 million, which was up 3.2% year over year.

HLIT reaffirmed the broadband segment’s full-year 2024 revenue guidance of $460 million to $500 million, with an expected accelerated growth in 2025. The company is enhancing profitability in the video sector and expanding its pipeline with new tier-1 SaaS and larger-scale appliance opportunities.

The recent portfolio expansion is expected to translate into incremental revenues for the company, likely benefiting the stock in the long run.

HLIT’S Zacks Rank & Stock Price Performance

HLIT currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). Shares of the company have gained 36.3% in the past year compared with the sub-industry’s growth of 58.1%.

Zacks Investment Research
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Other Stocks to Consider

Some other top-ranked stocks from the broader technology space are Arista Networks, Inc. (ANET - Free Report) , Airgain, Inc. (AIRG - Free Report) and AudioCodes Ltd. (AUDC - Free Report) . ANET presently sports a Zacks Rank #1, whereas AIRG and AUDC carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) each. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Arista Networks has a long-term earnings growth expectation of 17.2% and delivered an earnings surprise of 15.02%, on average, in the trailing four quarters. In the last reported quarter, ANET delivered an earnings surprise of 8.25%. 

Airgain has a long-term earnings growth expectation of 35% and delivered an earnings surprise in two of the trailing four quarters. In the last reported quarter, AIRG delivered an earnings surprise of 28.57%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AIRG’s 2024 loss per share is pegged at 13 cents.

AudioCodes delivered an earnings surprise of 10.14%, on average, in three of the trailing four quarters. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AUDC’s 2024 EPS has decreased 3.2% in the past 60 days to 9 cents.

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