A popular saying in professional sports is that Father Time is undefeated. The clock stops for no professional athlete. The same can be true of the current data center buildout.
A recent JPMorgan Chase report states that more than 60% of the planned data center capacity for 2027 has not yet been started. An additional 7% of projects under construction are being delayed by supply chain bottlenecks, permitting hurdles, and power shortages.
Investors who focus on FUD (fear, uncertainty, and doubt) argue that the shift out of technology stocks, particularly hyperscaler stocks, is evidence that the data center story is falling apart.
But the recent earnings season refuted that point of view. Demand is real. The money is committed. In the last quarter, the four major hyperscalers raised their combined AI-related capital expenditures to $750 billion for this calendar year. That demand is expected to reach $1 trillion in 2027.
But the one factor that investors can’t control is the time it takes to actually build the data centers. The story has gotten ahead of the shovels.
Data Center Backlog Stocks Could Be the Bigger AI Trade
A more likely reason for the selloff is rotation into the stocks of companies that are essential to filling this backlog. The companies supplying the equipment needed to build new facilities stand to be the largest beneficiaries.
One option for investors is to look at exchange-traded funds (ETFs) tied to physical data center infrastructure. One example is the Global X U.S. Infrastructure Development ETF (BATS: PAVE), which is up 22% in 2026 as of this writing.
However, investors may do better by investing in individual stocks within these funds. That can provide the opportunity for market-beating gains and, in some cases, dividends that can beat the performance of a single fund.
Eaton Is Turning AI Data Center Spend Into Backlog Growth
Eaton (NYSE: ETN) sells the electrical guts inside an AI data center. Think of switchgear, UPS systems, busways, and power distribution units that connect the grid to the server racks. The Q1 2026 numbers tell the story. In Eaton’s Electrical Americas segment, data center orders surged roughly 240% year over year, while data center revenue in the segment grew about 50%.
That growth is likely to accelerate. Eaton closed the Boyd Thermal acquisition to expand into liquid cooling. The company is also collaborating with NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA) on the Beam Rubin DSX platform for AI factories. Plus, a planned Reverse Morris Trust deal will spin off Eaton's Mobility Group. That leaves a more focused Electrical and Aerospace business aligned squarely with AI buildout demand.
ETN is up 28% year-to-date, which lands it within 5% of its consensus price target. However, since the company’s Q1 2026 earnings report, analysts have been aggressively raising their price targets.
Why Quanta Services Offers the Clearest Backlog Visibility
Quanta Services (NYSE: PWR) does the physical work that turns a data center site plan into delivered power. The company builds high-voltage transmission lines, substations, and load centers. At its 2026 Investor Day, management outlined a $2.4 trillion addressable market through 2030.
The backlog supports that forecast. Quanta exited Q4 with a $44 billion backlog, up 27.5% year-over-year. Management now guides for 15% to 20% annual EPS (earnings per share) growth through 2030. Internal training programs have built a skilled-labor moat that smaller rivals struggle to match. That gives PWR pricing power as electricians and linemen become scarce.
PWR is up over 65% year-to-date, and like ETN, it’s within about 5% of its consensus price target. But analyst sentiment is bullish, and the chart is constructive, with support at the 50-day simple moving average (SMA) and a MACD on the cusp of reversing.
Vertiv Turns AI Heat and Power Demand Into Backlog Growth
Vertiv (NYSE: VRT) sells the power and thermal infrastructure inside the building. Once Quanta finishes the grid work, Vertiv's UPS systems, switchgear, racks, and liquid cooling take over. Roughly 75% of revenue now comes from data center customers. Q1 2026 revenue grew 30% to $2.65 billion. Project backlog more than doubled to over $15 billion.
Management raised its full-year guidance to $13.5 to $14 billion in net sales. Recent acquisitions of Strategic Thermal Labs and ThermoKey extend Vertiv from chip-level cold plates to facility-scale heat rejection. Vertiv was also named a Tier 1 partner on Hut 8's (NASDAQ: HUT) gigawatt-scale Beacon Point AI campus. Each hyperscaler win reinforces the picks-and-shovels thesis.
VRT is up over 95% in 2026 and is also trading within 5% of its consensus price target. The company also has the most mixed analyst picture of the three stocks on this list. But investors willing to play the long game should consider VRT's potential for strong dividend growth in the coming years.
The article "Data Center Delays Create Opportunity in These 3 Stocks" first appeared on MarketBeat.
