Calix, Clearfield election selloffs an opportunity, says Northland

Northland views the post election weakness in rural fiber names Calix (CALX) and Clearfield (CLFD), likely driven by concerns that Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment program funding will be either delayed or more biased toward satellite broadband, as buying opportunities. The state of Louisiana submitted its final proposal for BEAD with 95% of the funds allocated to fiber, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm says this shows that many of the state processes are very far along and that fiber will always be the preferred option over the longer term. Northland thinks a likely scenario post the Trump win is that the National Telecommunications and Information Administration opens up the definition of “reliable broadband service” to include satellite and fixed wireless, giving states the flexibility to fund these options in the likely event that fiber is cost prohibitive for an entire state. It had assumed that 10%-plus of BEAD awards would be fixed wireless, and says that percentage is likely to move higher with satellite.