WiMAX at a Discount

The largest percentage loser on the Nasdaq today -- and by a wide margin -- is wireless broadband connective infrastructure company Alvarion (Nasdaq: ALVR  ) .

News that the company expects second-quarter revenue to be between $46 million and $47 million and net loss to be between $0.06 and $0.08 a share is the driving reason that the Israel-based company's stock tanked by more 20%. Analysts were expecting sales of $54 million and earnings of $0.05 a share.

Stirring interest in the stock has been the growing interest in WiMAX, a technology that will allow broadband connections over a much greater range than what is now available. Even though it is a small part of the company's revenue, WiMAX has been making news lately, with Intel (Nasdaq: INTC  ) getting its chips and devices into testing deals with Nokia (NYSE: NOK  ) and Sprint (NYSE: FON  ) . WiMAX is hot, and Alvarion was the first to demonstrate a working customer-premises demo with the Intel chip.

Not so hot, though, are Alvarion's non-WiMAX products. Hurting results are customer "budget adjustments" and slower-than-expected installations. Nether excuse is good, but when you have $127.1 million in cash and no debt, there is no reason to panic -- although that is just what investors did today.

The company is preparing to update its outlook for the year on Aug. 3, when it reports third-quarter results. Investors should consider that the company has been making modest profits and is expecting a modest loss in the second quarter. This is not a company at the end of its technology rope searching for its future. Alvarion's future is already mapped out in WiMAX.

Investors interested in speculating in WiMAX's promise of "broadband everywhere" are paying 18 times 2006 expected earnings for Alvarion. Be aware, though, that established names like Cisco (Nasdaq: CSCO  ) could quickly launch products if WiMAX looks to be a big winner.

Fact is, WiMAX could and may be the next "big" thing. The fact also remains that Alvarion is still a small fish next to a much bigger fish.

Are you looking for rule-breaking companies ready to rule the world? Why not take a free trial of the Motley Fool Rule Breakers newsletter and capitalize on the investments it recommends?

Fool contributor W.D. Crotty does not own shares in any of the companies mentioned. Click here to see the Motley Fool's ironclad disclosure policy.