This 'premier' data center play has 30% upside ahead, says BMO
BMO sees Vertiv as AI infrastructure's clearest winner, with a $329 target implying 30% upside from current levels.
- 01A post-peak pullback in Vertiv shares is drawing fresh institutional conviction.
- 02BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage with an outperform rating, citing accelerating rack-power density, speed-to-deployment demand, and a $75B addressable market growing nearly 20% annually.
- 03Management's long-term forecasts may even be conservative, the analyst noted.
- 04Data center land spend surged 79% year-over-year in early 2026, underscoring structural tailwinds.
BMO sees Vertiv as AI infrastructure's clearest winner, with a $329 target implying 30% upside from current levels.
A post-peak pullback in Vertiv shares is drawing fresh institutional conviction. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage with an outperform rating, citing accelerating rack-power density, speed-to-deployment demand, and a $75B addressable market growing nearly 20% annually. Management's long-term forecasts may even be conservative, the analyst noted. Data center land spend surged 79% year-over-year in early 2026, underscoring structural tailwinds. Vertiv's integrated power-and-thermal platform leaves few credible rivals at scale. • Watch: Whether Vertiv's content-per-megawatt rate expands beyond the current $3.25–$3.75 range as AI rack density intensifies.
Watch: Whether rising rack-power intensity pushes Vertiv's per-megawatt content rates above current ceilings, validating the bull case.
Skip Navigation cnbc.com This ‘premier’ data center play has 30% upside ahead, says BMO Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via Email Markets Pre-Markets U.S.
Read the full article at cnbc.comShow the full text · 4 min readHide the full text
Skip Navigation cnbc.com This ‘premier’ data center play has 30% upside ahead, says BMO Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via Email Markets Pre-Markets U.S. Markets Currencies Prediction Markets Cryptocurrency Futures & Commodities Bonds Funds & ETFs Business Economy Finance Health & Science Media Real Estate Energy Climate Transportation Investigations Industrials Retail Wealth Sports Life Small Business Investing Personal Finance Fintech Financial Advisors Options Action ETF Street Buffett Archive Earnings Trader Talk Tech Cybersecurity AI Enterprise Internet Media Mobile Social Media CNBC Disruptor 50 Tech Guide Politics & Policy White House Policy Defense Congress Expanding Opportunity Video Latest Video Full Episodes Livestream Live Audio Live TV Schedule CNBC Podcasts CEO Interviews CNBC Documentaries Digital Originals Watchlist Investing Club Trust Portfolio Analysis Trade Alerts Meeting Videos Homestretch Jim’s Columns Education Subscribe PRO Pro News Josh Brown Mike Santoli Calls of the Day My Portfolio Livestream Full Episodes Stock Screener Market Forecast Options Investing Chart Investing Subscribe Livestream Menu Make It select USA INTL Livestream Search quotes, news & videos Livestream Watchlist SIGN IN Create free account This ‘premier’ data center play has 30% upside ahead, says BMO Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via Email Markets Business Investing Tech Politics & Policy Video Watchlist Investing Club PRO Livestream Menu cnbc.com This ‘premier’ data center play has 30% upside ahead, says BMO Published Mon, Oct 5 2026 10:01 AM EDT Michelle Fox@MFoxCNBC WATCH LIVE Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via Email 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. More in Pro 1. cnbc.comHarley-Davidson has struggled in recent years. Citi says buy the stock 2. cnbc.comHere are Monday’s biggest analyst calls: Nvidia, SpaceX, Microsoft, Wells Fargo, Samsara & more 3. cnbc.comJPMorgan’s trading desk is bullish near term once again 4. cnbc.comGoldman Sachs says buy these stocks now, ahead of their earnings 5. cnbc.comJPMorgan’s best stock ideas heading into October My Portfolio LINK YOUR PORTFOLIO More In Analyst Calls cnbc.com cnbc.comHere are Monday’s biggest analyst calls: Nvidia, SpaceX, Tesla, Apple, Microsoft, Wells Fargo, Samsara & more Michael Bloom2 hours ago cnbc.com cnbc.comWells Fargo has lagged rival banks. Morgan Stanley says it’s time to buy Fred Imbert4 hours ago cnbc.com cnbc.comHarley-Davidson has struggled in recent years. Citi says buy the stock Fred Imbert4 hours ago Read More cnbc.com facebook.com twitter.com linkedin.com instagram.com youtube.com apple.news cnbc.com Subscribe to CNBC PRO Subscribe to Investing Club Licensing & Reprints CNBC Councils Select Personal Finance Join the CNBC Panel Closed Captioning Digital Products News Releases Internships Corrections About CNBC Site Map Podcasts Careers Help Contact #### News Tips Got a confidential news tip? We want to hear from you. Get In Touch #### CNBC Newsletters
Don't miss tomorrow's
The Daily Pulse in your inbox each morning — sourced and linked.