5 Reasons Why Vuzix Is One Of Chardan Capital's Top Picks In 2018

Vuzix VUZI is set to unveil its Blade smart glasses at CES 2018. Ahead of the conference, shares rallied about 24 percent as details of what would be discussed at CES emerged.

The Analyst

Chardan Capital analyst James McIlree called Vuzix one of the firm’s top picks for 2018 and reiterated a Buy and $10 price target for the stock. 

The Thesis

• The year ahead is shaping up to be a transformative one for Vuzix, McIlree said in a note. (See the analyst's track record here.) Some of the factors McIlree said are working in Vuzix's favor are: 
• Building demand for the M300 due to its capabilities in a multitude of industries.
• The commercial market for augmented reality devices has large expansion potential. 
• Manufacturing capacity is ample to meet demand.
• Distribution is expanding with the company’s Vuzix Industrial Partner channel as well as the recently announced Toshiba partnership.
• The upcoming Blade model, which utilizes Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN's Alexa system, could offer breakthrough capabilities.

Continued sales of Vuzix’s M300 augmented reality glasses, for which Vuzix partnered with Toshiba, are expected to be the primary driver of revenue in 2018, according to Chardan Capital. 

The Amazon partnership for the Blade smart glasses drove shares up "sharply," and the Alexa integration "will increase the product's visibility," McIlree said. "We believe there is the potential to deliver thousands of units of sales this year, with revenue from Blade between $1 million [and] $3 million." 

As the commercial market for smart glasses and AR systems expands, McIlree said Vuzix’s technological breakthroughs and ability to enhance productivity in a multitude of industries could make the company a leader in a growing field and put them on track to exceed analysts’ revenue estimates in 2018. Vuzix has the manufacturing capacity to meet growing demand, McIlree said. 

Price Action

Vuzix closed Monday up 12.42 percent at $8.60. 

Related Links:

For Smart Glasses Maker Vuzix, 2018 Could Be 'Transformative' 

Loup Ventures: Tech Giants Have Invested In 217 AR, VR Startups 

Photo courtesy of Vuzix.