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Dear Reader,
While gold investors celebrate record prices...
Here's what I believe the gold's surge is really telling us...
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2 Lesser-Known Photonics Firms May Play an Outsized Role in AI
Author: Nathan Reiff. Published: 3/25/2026.
Key Points
- In early March, NVIDIA made a key investment of $2 billion each in two photonics firms, sparking renewed interest in this lesser-known technology that could have big implications for AI.
- Coherent was one of the beneficiaries of NVIDIA's investment, with momentum supported by production increases, data center business growth, and more.
- Nova is another company operating adjacent to these firms that has benefited from surging demand from semiconductor makers.
- Special Report: Elon's "Hidden" Company
While uncertainty is rising about how the Iran war could disrupt the artificial intelligence industry's rapid growth, there has not yet been a notable sell-off among the major AI names. As a result, the sector's losses haven't exceeded the broader S&P 500's 4% year-to-date (YTD) decline.
Despite external turbulence, new opportunities may be emerging in the AI ecosystem. Notably, NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA) recently invested $2 billion apiece in two smaller photonics companies—Lumentum Holdings (NASDAQ: LITE) and Coherent Inc. (NYSE: COHR)—a move that could signal a growing focus on this AI-adjacent technology.
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Go here for the full gold briefing — including the stock name and buy-up-to price >>>NVIDIA appears bullish on how photonics firms could be instrumental in the next stage of AI infrastructure. Investors have reacted, sending shares of those two companies higher over the last month.
That shift has helped lift other photonics-related names as well. Here's what investors need to know.
Coherent's NVIDIA Deal Could Be Transformative, but Watch Valuation
One of the key constraints on scaling AI infrastructure is bandwidth. Traditional electrical inter-chip communication methods can limit throughput, and photonics may be essential to expanding capacity as AI clusters grow.
NVIDIA has placed a significant bet on Coherent, a leading photonics company with a reported market capitalization of $51 billion. The two companies have worked together for about 20 years, and NVIDIA's latest investment—part of a non-exclusive agreement—deepens that relationship while allowing Coherent to continue other business.
COHR shares are up more than 45% YTD, pushing the stock about 11% above the consensus price target of $241.92. Analysts remain generally positive: 14 of 19 covering the stock assign it a Buy rating.
That enthusiasm is supported by fundamentals that help explain Coherent's lofty valuation of roughly 270 times earnings. Coherent's revenue rose 17% year-over-year in the most recent quarter, to about $1.7 billion, and adjusted earnings per share of $1.29 beat expectations by $0.26.
Growth is being driven by rapid expansion in data center demand, a ramp-up in production capacity, and optimistic guidance: management projects current-quarter revenue as high as $1.84 billion and non-GAAP gross margins between 38.5% and 40.5%. Still, investors should remember the $2 billion private placement is dilutive to existing shareholders, which is an additional risk despite NVIDIA's endorsement.
N nova Ltd. (NVMI) Is Gaining Traction Outside the Headlines
While Coherent and Lumentum have dominated recent headlines because of NVIDIA's moves, Nova Ltd. (NASDAQ: NVMI) is a photonics-adjacent company quietly building momentum, with shares also up more than 45% YTD.
Nova's metrology tools and process-control equipment are valuable to semiconductor manufacturers because they aid the production of photonic components and advanced chips more broadly. Those tools are essential to manufacturing and quality control for the materials used in AI systems, so growth in AI naturally benefits Nova's business.
The company reported record full-year 2025 revenue of $881 million, a 31% year-over-year increase, and is forecasting Q1 2026 revenue between $222 million and $232 million.
Although Nova hasn't received a high-profile investment from NVIDIA, it is gaining traction with major partners. Multiple unnamed semiconductor firms have adopted Nova's Metrion platform for production. These partnerships should continue to generate revenue over time, helping the company weather the cyclical dynamics of the semiconductor space.
Of 10 analysts covering NVMI, nine give it a Buy rating, even though the current share price sits nearly 9% above the consensus price target. Nova's rally has stretched its valuation to about 60 times earnings—high, but materially lower than Coherent's multiple. Investors attracted to Nova are betting on durable partnerships and a continued role in semiconductor manufacturing.
Given the significant rallies in photonics and related names in recent months, cautious investors may prefer to wait for a pullback before buying. Both Coherent and Nova are now in a position to prove their value to major manufacturers like NVIDIA—or to face a sell-off if sentiment cools. For investors bullish on photonics' role in AI infrastructure, these companies may be logical places to begin further research.
Lululemon's Share Price Bottom Is In: Nowhere to Go But Up
Author: Thomas Hughes. Published: 3/20/2026.
Key Points
- Lululemon is set up to rebound in 2026 as it builds momentum in international sales, drives cash flow, and buys back shares.
- Analysts weigh on price action in early 2026, as weak guidance undermines confidence, but outperformance is likely.
- Institutions are accumulating LULU at long-term lows, providing a floor for the action and limiting downside risk.
- Special Report: Elon's "Hidden" Company
Lululemon's (NASDAQ: LULU) share price may face hurdles in 2026, but signals from technical charts, valuation metrics, analysts, institutions, and recent earnings results suggest lower prices are unlikely. There is always risk for this retail stock, but at current levels Lululemon's potential appears to outweigh the downside, offering an attractive reward profile for investors willing to buy in.
The charts are where it all starts. Lululemon's technicals point to a potential bottom and the earliest signs of a rebound across multiple timeframes.
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Go here for the full gold briefing — including the stock name and buy-up-to price >>>The monthly chart is the weakest but still supportive, with a likely floor near $164—roughly the late 2019 highs.
That level also roughly matches the early-2020 lows driven by COVID-19 fears, and given the price action then and today's opportunity, it is likely to act as a strong support.
Weekly and daily charts strengthen the outlook, suggesting not only a price floor but also early signs of an advance. In this scenario, Lululemon's stock is positioned to move higher as 2026 progresses and gain momentum as capital rotates back into the name.
Valuation metrics point to a deep-value opportunity: LULU trades near early-2020 price levels while revenue is more than 185% higher. The market assigned a premium in 2019 that no longer appears justified, and trading at roughly 12x earnings looks attractively low. This sets the stage for both near-term multiple expansion and longer-term upside—the near-term valuation implies nearly 100% upside versus the S&P 500 average valuation, while longer-horizon forecasts imply substantially greater upside by 2035 or sooner.
Analysts and Institutions Signal Floor for Lululemon
Analyst sentiment pressured the stock in early 2026. Even with price-target reductions following the fiscal 2025 earnings release, the overall pattern is consistent with a market bottom. The low end of the reduced targets sits below current levels, but those pessimistic targets are outliers.
The consensus of six targets issued within the first 18 hours after the release was $180—below the broader consensus but still comfortably above the critical support level—with the high-end target pointing to about $225.
For now, analyst sentiment offers no immediate catalyst for a rebound, though that could change as the company issues subsequent quarterly updates.
The company's cautious 2026 guidance appears to be the main factor behind the sentiment shift. If future results beat expectations or guidance is revised upward, analysts and market sentiment could follow, creating a meaningful catalyst.
Institutional activity also aligns with the view that the downside is limited. Institutions own more than 85% of the float. After reducing positions in the back half of 2025, they returned to accumulation in Q1 2026. Early Q1 flows show more than $2 bought for every $1 sold—a strong buying pace that provides tangible support.
Lululemon Ended 2025 on a High Note: Guides Downbeat for 2026
Lululemon closed out 2025 with a solid quarter, producing $3.64 billion in net revenue—0.8% year-over-year growth and about 170 basis points above consensus. The strength was driven by International segment sales, offsetting mild declines in the Americas, and came despite a tough comp that included an extra week in the prior year. Adjusting for that calendar effect, revenue growth was closer to 6%, with comps up 3% systemwide and 15 net new stores added.
Margins held up better than feared. While earnings contracted, the EPS of $5.01 was nearly a quarter above expectations. More importantly, cash flow, the balance sheet, and the capacity for buybacks remain in better-than-expected condition, which improves the outlook for a share-price recovery.
Share buybacks are material: buybacks reduced the share count by 3.85% in fiscal 2025 and are expected to continue aggressively in 2026. Balance-sheet highlights show no red flags, indicating the company is sufficiently capitalized and levered to continue executing its strategy and building shareholder value.
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