Why Shares of Velodyne Lidar Soared in December

It was a fantastic year for automotive technology stocks, and the focus in December was on makers of lidar systems that power most autonomous vehicle systems. That helped send shares of Velodyne Lidar (NASDAQ: VLDR) up 43.3% in December, according to data provided by S&P Global Market Intelligence.

Lidar is a technology that uses pulses of light to measure ranges and detect objects. It's a crucial part of most advanced driver-assist systems currently on the road and a big part of a number of self-driving concepts. The systems should only grow in importance in the years to come.

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Source Fool.com