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Equinix ’s ( EQIX ) global footprint of data center assets and network connections to cloud services providers give it a growing edge over rivals, says Pacific Crest Securities, which raised its price target on the stock to 375. Equinix stock is about even for 2016 so far, after breaking out of a flat base with a 304.87 buy point at the end of 2015. It’s been consolidating ever since. Shares of Redwood City, Calif.-based Equinix edged up a fraction in early trading in the stock market today , near 302. Pacific Crest analyst Michael Bowen said the company’s acquisitions of Europe-based Telecity Group and Japan-based Bit-isle in 2015 will expand Equinix’s reach. “The magnetic pull Equinix has been able to achieve by having a dense global footprint of data center assets cannot be ignored. No other data center company in the world can offer equivalent scale of interconnection services as Equinix,” Bowen wrote. Data center operators provide space, power and cooling. Customers pack the warehouse-sized data centers with their own computer servers and other gear. Equinix also specializes in providing connections to high-speed, fiber-optic networks. Demand for data-center space has been driven by the rise of social networking, mobile devices, cloud services, online gaming, computer-based stock trading and more. Equinix’s customers include leading cloud computing services providers Amazon.com ( AMZN ) and Microsoft ( MSFT ), as well as other large companies. “Equinix is the only company that can enable enterprise adoption of the cloud, since it has created an ecosystem in which service providers can connect with enterprises,” added Bowen. “The ecosystem should be very difficult to replicate, and interconnection is one of the keys to Equinix’s success.” The data center market is divided among wholesale providers such as Digital Realty ( DLR ) and DuPont Fabros ( DFT ) and retail operators such as Equinix. Wholesale providers sell huge amounts of space over contracts that run several years, while retail operators sell less space over shorter contracts and provide more specialized services, such as hook-ups to high-speed data networks. Image provided by Shutterstock . Scalper1 News
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