All this activity has served to ignite Vixel's stock price, which more than doubled in the past three months. The stock hit a 52-week high of $7.35 on June 19, up from $3.24 on March 24. It closed today at $6.34, up 0.5 percent for the day, amid a broader decline in the market.
However, at least two much larger companies -- QLogic and Broadcom Corp. (Nasdaq: BRCM) -- will soon be breathing down Vixel's neck. QLogic, which has chalked up significant wins in the embedded host bus adapter (HBA) space, has plans to deliver a switch-on-a-chip for embedded applications. And Broadcom, which earlier this year acquired the assets of bankrupt FC switch maker Gadzoox Networks, is also expected to pursue this area (see Broadcom Switches on FC and Broadcom Gulps Gadzoox).
Vixel, though, expresses confidence that it has a lead over any competitors. "The likes of QLogic or anyone else could jump into the fray, but we haven't seen anyone with silicon," says Beth White, VP of marketing at Vixel, adding, "Once you get designed into a system, you become part of their DNA."
She also claims that "nine out of the top 10 storage vendors" are either reselling Vixel products, have designed Vixel switch technology into their arrays, or are evaluating its technology [ed. note: but we bet at least four out of five dentists have no clue what Vixel does]. White won't say which vendor isn't working with Vixel.
Apart from the looming competition, though, there are some financial concerns for the company. Vixel, founded in 1991, has never been profitable and doesn't expect to get out of the red until the first half of 2004 at the earliest. As of March 30, 2003, Vixel had an accumulated deficit of $136.7 million. For fiscal 2002, the company posted revenues of $20.6 million -- and operating expenses of $23.0 million.
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