Canadian Stock Profiles| Canadian Stock Profiles |
| Founded in 1981 by
a group of former engineers from Bell Northern Research,
Canada's JDS Fitel, a manufacturer of fibre optic
components, merged in July with the American Uniphase
Corporation. Both companies were in roughly the same business, about the same size, and after some brain-storming sessions in Banff, Alberta between JDS Fitel's CEO Jozef Straus and Uniphase's CEO Kevin Kalkhoven, they decided they'd rather switch than fight. The merged company is the world leader in fibre optic technology and component production. And their clientele reads like a Who's Who of the companies building the infrastructure for the Internet - Nortel Networks, Lucent Technologies, Corning Inc., Italy's Pirelli SpA and France's Alcatel. The company controls three quarters of the market for fibre optic equipment, a market that is growing at a fantastic pace. JDS Uniphase is also a leader in the manufacture of industrial lasers. First Quarter results released in late October show sales revenue for the quarter ended Sept. 30, 1999 to be $230 million, up 104% over the combined sales of the pre-mergered companies in 1998. Sales for the quarter are also up 20% over the previous quarter ended June 30, 1999. The company is not resting on its laurels but is actively engaged in expanding its business and acquiring complementary companies. It's looking at about 40 - 50 optical start-ups as possible acquisitions. JDS Uniphase has been a recommended buy by momentum analysts Timothy and Carlton Lutz of the Cabot Market Letter since July 7, 1999. They noted in September that Cisco Systems recently acquired two data networking companies specializing in fibre optic systems. JDS Uniphase will likely be the key supplier of these companies' components. Cisco estimates the fibre optics market will hit $17 billion in 2002. On Oct. 29th, JDS Uniphase announced plans to at least double its manufacturing capacity. "The name of the game in the year 2000 is going to be ramping up manufacturing as hard and as fast as we can to meet the demands of our customers," said CEO Kevin Kalkhoven. Shares Outstanding:
JDS Aims to Double Capacity Oct. 29th news item from The Ottawa Citizen Address: Phone: 613-727-1304 This page last updated: Oct. 31, 1999 |
Stock Symbol: JDU (TSE) JDSU (NASDAQ) Profile News: Forums: |