Though the broader tech sector is still recuperating from last year’s downturn, savvy investors will want to focus on a promising, burgeoning field in edge computing. Indeed, this paradigm effectively brings computation and data storage closer to the devices where it’s being gathered, significantly enhancing efficiencies. Therefore, investing in the top edge computing stocks to buy could prove to be incredibly lucrative over the long term.

According to Mordor Intelligence, the edge computing market, valued at $6.80 billion in 2022, is predicted to skyrocket to $58.60 billion by 2028. Thus, this reflects a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of roughly 45% during the 2023-2028 forecast period.

With that said, let’s look at the most promising edge computing stocks. These are businesses that focus on boosting productivity for its clientele, leading to significant cost reductions across various industries.

Akamai (AKAM)

Akamai (NASDAQ:AKAM) is a heavyweight in edge computing, with its global web of thousands of distributed servers. Its powerful network empowers its customers to harness the benefits of edge computing, enhancing operational efficiency.

Notably, the company has established its position as a titan in the realm of content delivery networks (CDN). Accordingly, Akamai excels in facilitating secure data transfer across entities, underpinned by a colossal CDN of approximately 350,000 servers scattered across over 134 countries and more than 1,300 networks globally.

Akamai has operated a remarkably-profitable business with industry-leading metrics. For instance, over the past five years, its EBITDA, net income, and levered free-cash-flow margins have surged over 31%, 15.3%, and 17.2%, respectively. Furthermore, it has proven to be an excellent wealth compounder, generating more than 100% in total shareholder returns over this period. Notably, AKAM stock still trades at a discount to many of its historical pricing metrics.

Fastly (FSLY)

Fastly (NASDAQ:FSLY) has successfully made its mark in the burgeoning field of edge computing by providing a platform that enables the creation of high-scale, globally distributed applications. Fastly’s offerings effectively eliminate the need to manage underlying infrastructure, offering a “faster, simpler, and more secure” solution than many of its competitors.

The company’s versatile edge cloud platform excels in content delivery, web and mobile application optimization, and real-time data processing. Its platform ensures swift data processing and proficient handling of large data volumes. Moreover, its robust high-performance Edge Cloud platform offers a comprehensive, holistic network services solution encompassing security, computing, and observability.

Fastly operates a hyper-growth business, posting more than 30% top-line growth annually over the past five years. However, its rapid expansion has come at the cost of its bottom line. Nevertheless, the company has made significant progress in breaking-even, and is estimated to become profitable within the next few years.

Arista Networks (ANET)

Cloud network services provider Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) has effectively distinguished itself in the realm of edge computing with a strategic shift towards ‘campus cloud’ solutions. The construction of smaller, local data centers for enterprise clients showcases the company’s commitment to the core principles of edge computing, which include rapid data processing and reduced latency.

Furthermore, there is Arista’s AI-driven security platform, a testament to its dedication to cybersecurity, addressing the inherent security concerns of edge computing with the distributed nature of data. The platform’s focus on enabling a zero-trust strategy, automated threat hunting, and network forensics facilitates secure adoption of edge computing. Additionally, the combination of innovative cloud solutions and robust cybersecurity makes Arista Networks a compelling prospect in the roster of high potential edge computing stocks to buy.

A look at its glowing fundamentals, marked by double-digit historical growth across both its top- and bottom-lines, points to incredible upside for ANET stock ahead.

On the date of publication, Muslim Farooque did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines