How to Invest in the Next Game-Changer in Smartphones

Sales at this company are a billion a year -- that's what the company pulls in keeping the existing retailer base supplied with hardware. When one considers the possibility that so many of those terminals need to be replaced with new technology, the numbers get impressive, and quickly.

The thing to do is to beat the rest of the pack to the trade. Smartphone-based commerce won't make headlines until it's implemented at Wal-Mart, and I think these shares are worth owning well in advance of that date.

While the company, with a market cap of $5.6 billion, is a little larger than my recommendation in Game-Changing Stocks, its growth profile is just too sweet to ignore.

Two other things to like about this stock:

One, most of its shares are held by institutions, some 91%. That means the shares that are traded each day are more likely than not to be the 9% held by individual investors. That's always nice -- a less visible supply of shares means that the effect of good news will be magnified.

The other aspect to like about this company is its increase in shareholder equity during the past three years, when the portion of the company owned by the shareholders has risen in value to $1.1 billion from $72 million. This is evidence of strong financial management and bodes well for the company's ability to translate market demand into an increased stock price. I don't know about you, but I like that.

Risks to consider: It is possible this trend takes longer to develop than I predict, but I just don't see the change not happening. That said, you should do additional research on this stock before committing to buying.

Action to take: Smartphone-based commerce is an unstoppable trend. I like shares of Verifone at any price under $55.

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