Vertiv Holdings (VRT +0.53%) just showed that following the pick-and-shovel approach to investing in data centers and artificial intelligence (AI) is alive and well. On Wednesday morning, it reported strong results for the fourth quarter of 2025 and even stronger guidance for the year ahead, and shares were up 22% by midday. As of the close of trading Thursday, they were still holding onto most of that gain, up by 17% from where they sat before the report.
Even after that sharp rise, however, there's still one key reason to believe the stock price can continue to climb.
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Demand keeps growing
Vertiv has benefited from the tech sector's rapid AI data center buildout, as it provides critical infrastructure such as cooling solutions, energy storage, and monitoring systems. It just reiterated how important those offerings are, reporting that in 2025, its sales rose 28% to $10.2 billion. Operating profit for the year climbed 35% to $668 million, and free cash flow rose 66% to $1.8 billion.
NYSE: VRT
Key Data Points
The clearest signal this is still a stock to buy and hold onto came from one number in the report: Vertiv's backlog climbed 109% from $7.8 billion as of the end of 2024 to $15 billion at the end of 2025.
That's a strong signal of ongoing demand for the company's wares, which is even more critical as investors grow more worried that the AI sector's growth may be losing steam. At least for Vertiv's role, though, it looks like it's full steam ahead.
For 2026, management forecasts organic net sales growth of 27% to 29%, and a $15 billion backlog supports that outlook. That level of demand shows that investors still have time to buy in and take advantage of what's ahead for this AI infrastructure company.
