Investing in IIoT and Newspace with ORBCOMM Stock

There are some things that defy classification. Take Goofy, the Disney cartoon character. What the fcuk is Goofy? It’s a debate that has raged for decades. Many just assume he’s a dog-like human, but his romantic partner is a cow, so perhaps he’s an anthropomorphized bovine? Some companies are also hard to peg down. Is Tesla a car manufacturer or a green energy company or both? A similarly spirited debate arose among our MBAs over a company that recently came on our radar: ORBCOMM (NASDAQ:ORBC). In recent years, the 25-year-old New Jersey company seems to have grown from a satellite network operator for machine-to-machine communication into a significant player in the Industrial Internet of Things. So, is ORBCOMM a NewSpace satellite company or an IIoT company or both—and is it worth adding to your portfolio to get some direct exposure to either (or both) of these sectors?

First, let’s talk about what ORBCOMM exactly does. Basically, the company operates its own telecommunications network to provide connectivity pretty much anywhere in the world. It’s like having access to a kind of private global internet connection, though one primarily devoted to