This ‘premier’ data center play has 30% upside ahead, says BMO
Tech
Demand for artificial intelligence data centers will continue to push shares of Vertiv higher, according to BMO Capital Markets. The firm initiated coverage of the stock on Sunday with an outperform rating and $329 price target, which implies roughly 30% upside from Friday’s close. The company provinces digital infrastructure and hardware for data centers and other facilities, with data centers making up about 85% of its revenue, said analyst Daniel DiCicco. He called Vertiv a “premium data center play” that has already run up more than 900% in the last five years. Shares have pulled back from their peak in May and now offer an attractive entry point, he said. “Vertiv is well positioned as data centers are increasing in scale and intensity (more power to the rack) and demand for resilience and speed to deployment continues to increase,” DiCicco wrote in a note to clients. VRT YTD mountain Vertiv year to date There are more than 4,700 data centers in the United States — and the number is growing . Some $6 billion was spent on land purchases in the U.S. for future data centers in the first half of 2026, according to commercial real estate firm Avison Young. That’s a 79% increase from last year, the firm found. Vertiv’s management has estimated that its $75 billion total addressable market is increasing 16% to 18% a year, with data centers growing 18% to 20% annually, DiCicco said. However, the company’s long-term growth forecasts could be conservative, he noted. Plus, Vertiv has a full suite of offerings. The current rate for data center content is $3.25 to $3.75 per megawatt, but innovation, standardization, service growth and integrated systems can all push that higher, DiCicco pointed out. “VRT has positioned itself as one of the few providers capable of delivering a fully integrated power and thermal management solution across the entire data center,” he said. Shares of Vertiv are up nearly 56% year to date. — CNBC’s Tobias Burns contributed reporting.
This ‘premier’ data center play has 30% upside ahead, says BMO
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