While 2007 won't go down as one of the most lucrative years for most investors, there were some mighty impressive moves by individual companies. There even was some renewed life in the wireless sector, with five major companies doubling investors' money this year. Here's a look at them:
Research In Motion (Nasdaq: RIMM)
The stock price of the Canadian maker of those sticky and addictive BlackBerrys vaulted 168% as the company continued to impress Wall Street with revenue growth just shy of 90% over the trailing 12 months. Whoever thought the Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) iPhone would kill the competition should take note.
VimpelCom (NYSE: VIP)
As one of Russia's top mobile services providers, VimpelCom has been growing cash flow from a strong base of subscribers in saturated Russia at the same time that it taps new growth in surrounding developing markets such as Kazakhstan and Ukraine. The result is a stock that has risen 161% this year, receiving an additional boost after the company announced the long-anticipated acquisition of Golden Telecom (Nasdaq: GLDN).
China Mobile (NYSE: CHL)
China's leading wireless services provider was on a roll as its stock rose 101% while the company attracted more than 48.4 million net subscribers in the first nine months of 2007. Increased penetration in rural areas has continued to fuel the growth at China Mobile.
Turkcell (NYSE: TKC)
Despite political and economic turmoil in Turkey, Turkcell grew its already-dominant share of that market this year and treated investors to a 109% gain in the process. Like VimpelCom, Turkcell also has interests in surrounding markets such as Ukraine that are early in their growth phase.
Mobile TeleSystems (NYSE: MBT)
Mobile TeleSystems, the other major wireless carrier in Russia, rose 103% this year in tandem with VimpelCom. The company has also been buying its way into smaller markets -- and investors have been enjoying the spoils.
Looking at the common traits of these companies, two things are obvious -- the big got bigger and the United States wasn't the driver for much of these gains. These companies are feeding off wireless growth in foreign markets that are in their prime development stages -- a trend that will continue for some time.
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