Vertiv's stock rallies as data-center AI deployments fuel earnings beat

By Steve Gelsi

Company cites 'acceleration of AI-driven demand' for sparking new orders

Vertiv Holdings Co.'s stock rallied Wednesday after the data-center provider's revenue and adjusted profit topped Wall Street analysts' expectations on stronger-than-expected orders fueled by artificial-intelligence demand.

Vertiv (VRT) jumped 9.5% in afternoon trades.

The company reported a first-quarter loss of $5.9 million, or 2 cents a share. In the year-ago quarter, Vertiv earned $50.3 million, or 12 cents a share.

Vertiv's adjusted profit of 43 cents a share in the latest quarter beat the FactSet consensus estimate of 35 cents a share.

Revenue rose 8% to $1.64 billion from $1.52 billion, ahead of the $1.62 billion analyst estimate.

First-quarter earnings were fueled by a 60% increase in orders, which exceeded expectations.

"Though still in its early stages, AI is quickly becoming a pervasive theme across our end markets," Vertiv Chief Executive Gioradano Albertazzi said in a statement.

Backlog stood at a record high of $6.3 billion at the end of the first quarter.

Looking ahead, Vertiv expects second-quarter adjusted earnings of 53 cents to 57 cents a share, against the FactSet consensus estimate of 55 cents a share.

For the full year, Vertiv expects adjusted earnings of $2.29 a share to $2.35 a share, while analysts are currently looking for earnings of $2.30 a share.

As a technology provider for digital infrastructure, the company is seeing more demand for products that contain elements of artificial intelligence.

Advances in graphics-processing units, which handle complex computations, have been getting upgraded with more AI elements.

Products containing AI, "are necessitating changes and upgrades to the critical digital infrastructure," the company said.

Earlier, Vertiv's stock was one of the most active issues in pre-market trading.

Also read: Goldman CEO expects AI to create financing boom due to demand for infrastructure

-Steve Gelsi

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04-24-24 1359ET

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