Nokia Expands Microsoft Partnership to Link Data Suite With Fabric

Jim Cramer recommended buying Nokia during the Lightning Round of CNBC's "Mad Money" on Sept. 16, calling it "a terrific situation" and saying "I would be a buyer right here." Nokia shares closed at $10.60 on Sept. 17, up about 62% year to date and more than 130% over the past 12 months, though the stock still trades far below its peak of around $29. Cramer's call rested on valuation: Nokia trades at approximately 22 times forward earnings, unusual in a market where AI-linked stocks usually see more than 30 times, and he contrasted it with BWX Technologies, which he passed on because its "price-to-earnings multiple at 30 times is too high." The endorsement came a day before Nokia disclosed on Sept. 17 an expanded partnership with Microsoft that integrates its Nokia Data Suite with Microsoft Fabric, a joint solution the companies say cuts the weeks telecom operators normally need to prepare network data for AI applications down to minutes; shares rose around 3.8% on the news. In the second quarter, Nokia's revenue from artificial intelligence and cloud customers more than doubled year over year to approximately $509 million, order intake in that category reached 2.8 billion euros, roughly $3.2 billion at current exchange rates, and comparable operating profit rose 18% to 434 million euros, though reported net income fell to just 5 million euros and free cash flow dropped into a deficit of 732 million euros, or approximately $835 million, largely on 445 million euros of restructuring costs. Under CEO Justin Hotard, who took over in April 2025 after running Intel's data center division, Nokia has repositioned itself as one of the few Western vendors selling core equipment for AI data centers, supplying optical networking gear, IP routers, and fiber infrastructure to hyperscalers such as Microsoft and Google.