So you think the push for 3-D television sets is supposed to help only TV set makers such as Sony (NYSE: SNE) and Panasonic (NYSE: PC)? Think again.
See, you can't build a 3-D TV without a whole new set of chips that make the whole thing work. Mid-cap semiconductor designer Maxim Integrated Products (Nasdaq: MXIM), for one, is hoping to see 3-D tech for the living room take off into the ionosphere.
The company just reported 43% sales growth year-over-year to $566 million, and CEO Tunc Doluca gave credit for the performance to 3-D TV sales and smartphones. Earnings multiplied from $0.03 per share to $0.19 per share, and Maxim now plans to expand its chip-building capacity in expectation of continued strong demand across all of its end markets.
It's not that the 3-D TV technology is Maxim's only path to growth, of course. In the consumer space, the company also sees plenty of opportunity in a video-conferencing solution developed out of a security camera specialist that Maxim acquired a year and a half ago. Smart power meters are another new market for Maxim, thanks to yet another small but promising acquisition. If Maxim keeps up with this ravenous yet productive buyout strategy, the company's broad portfolio of analog and mixed-signal chips and sensors may soon challenge analog market leaders Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN) and Analog Devices (NYSE: ADI).
Even without any new acquisitions to tack on and tuck in, Maxim is going to do just fine in the coming quarters. The crucial book-to-bill ratio stands above the make-or-break 1.0 benchmark, which gives Maxim a healthy helping of guaranteed sales going forward as well as improved visibility into business trends.
The analog chip sector is chock-full of great stocks. Analog Devices and National Semiconductor (NYSE: NSM) stand out among the biggest names but sport only three CAPS stars each. TI, Linear Technology (Nasdaq: LLTC), Maxim, and TI all have a fourth star to show off to curious investors. Analog-focused stocks like these have shown some of the best growth coming out of the recession as numerous end markets are ramping up demand. While Linear may find particular success in the automotive sector, National Semiconductor makes about 30% of revenues from mobile devices. There's many ways to place booming analog demand.
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