Telefonica (TEF) Arm, Celcom to Boost Malaysia's Cybersecurity

Telefonica, S.A.’s TEF digital business unit, Telefonica Tech, has teamed up with Celcom Axiata Berhad (Celcom) to reinforce the latter’s cybersecurity services and capabilities while ensuring secure business operations for organizations based in Malaysia.

Apart from protecting businesses against potential cyber threats, the partnership will strengthen Telefonica’s foothold in the Asia-Pacific region. It will also complement Celcom’s wide plethora of digital tools that aid businesses in streamlining their operations.

Based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Celcom is part of the Axiata group of companies. The entity has a solid subscriber base of 14 million, which includes mobile virtual network operators. The entity boasts more than 11,000 network sites covering 2G, 3G and 4G networks. It provides superior multimedia services and IoT solutions to its customers.

At a time when the COVID-19 pandemic has necessitated organizations to adopt best-in-class cybersecurity solutions for safeguarding their digital assets, the move comes as a boon. Per the agreement, both the entities have unveiled Digital Risk Protection and Vulnerability Risk Management platforms.

The solutions will enable Malaysian organizations to ensure business continuity while driving transformation in the new wave of digitization. Digital Risk Protection solution has been specifically designed to help enterprises detect risks associated with digital assets.

Vulnerability Risk Management identifies potential threats in information systems with analysis for customer assets. Driven by the resiliency of these platforms, the deal will boost Celcom’s capabilities, in turn, enabling it to deliver complete portfolios of cybersecurity services across multi-vertical industries based in the Southeast Asian country.

It is worth mentioning that both Telefonica and Axiata group have been proactively working together to offer innovative digital services to B2B customers from all Axiata Group’s operators under an agreement inked in 2020. Apart from fortifying the strategic relationship, the partnership will facilitate seamless operations with support for digital risk management, thanks to the combined expertise of Celcom and Telefonica Tech.

Telefonica provides a comprehensive suite of service platforms for fast go-to-market launches. Its IoT connectivity platform has been designed to address dynamic business requirements and enable a cost-effective solution to improve business productivity.

Over the past years, it has invested heavily in the deployment and transformation of its network to provide seamless connectivity. With operations across 17 countries, the Spanish telecom company is capitalizing on the opportunities in the digital world through several growth strategies to enhance long-term prospects while experiencing healthy traction in the smartphone market.

Telefonica currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Its shares have gained 2.3% compared with the industry’s growth of 1.3% in the past year. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Alliant Energy Corporation LNT is a solid pick for investors, carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). The consensus estimate for current-year earnings has been revised 1.9% upward over the past 60 days.

Alliant Energy delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 4.4%, on average. It has gained 15.3% in the past year. LNT has a long-term earnings growth expectation of 6.1%.

IDACORP, Inc. IDA carries a Zacks Rank #2. The consensus estimate for current-year earnings has been revised 0.4% upward over the past 60 days.

IDACORP delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 5.2%, on average. It has returned 15.1% in the past year. IDA has a long-term earnings growth expectation of 4.4%.

Otter Tail Corporation OTTR also has a Zacks Rank #2. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has been revised 0.8% upward over the past 60 days.

Otter Tail delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 27.9%, on average. It has rallied 54.2% in the past year. OTTR has a long-term earnings growth expectation of 4.7%.

5 Stocks Set to Double

Each was handpicked by a Zacks expert as the #1 favorite stock to gain +100% or more in 2021. Previous recommendations have soared +143.0%, +175.9%, +498.3% and +673.0%.

Most of the stocks in this report are flying under Wall Street radar, which provides a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor.

The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.