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Can AI Infrastructure Demand Fuel CDW's Growth in 2026?
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Key Takeaways
CDW posted 9% higher Q1 2026 net sales as AI infrastructure investments boosted hardware demand.
CDW's full-stack model supports AI deployment through hardware, software and integration services.
CDW expanded AI capabilities with GPU-as-a-service access and internal AI productivity initiatives.
CDW Corporation (CDW - Free Report) is benefiting from growing demand for AI infrastructure as organizations move beyond experimentation and begin deploying AI in production environments. In the first quarter of 2026, the company delivered strong results driven by AI-related investments and ongoing infrastructure modernization. Customers across industries increased spending on networking, storage, servers, power and cooling solutions as they worked to support AI workloads and address supply constraints.
This demand contributed to a 9% year-over-year increase in net sales, with infrastructure hardware emerging as a major growth driver. CDW also reported strong software demand, particularly for platforms focused on AI readiness, productivity, collaboration and security.
The company believes the shift from AI exploration to large-scale implementation plays directly to its strengths. As organizations deploy AI, they face increasing challenges related to infrastructure design, data management, security, governance and operational execution. CDW’s full-stack model, which combines hardware, software, advisory services and implementation expertise, enables customers to build and manage AI environments more effectively. Management highlighted that AI adoption is driving demand not only for compute resources but also for services that help customers integrate AI into existing technology environments and achieve measurable business outcomes.
CDW is expanding its AI capabilities through internal initiatives and strategic partnerships. The company continues to embed AI across its operations through programs aimed at improving productivity, sales effectiveness and operational efficiency. In addition, CDW recently established a relationship that provides customers access to high-performance AI infrastructure through a flexible GPU-as-a-service model, helping address growing demand for accelerated computing resources. Management stated that AI is increasing wallet share opportunities while also attracting new customers that require broader technology integration capabilities.
CDW expects AI-related investments to remain an important growth catalyst throughout 2026. While management remains cautious about macroeconomic uncertainty and supply-chain dynamics, it continues to expect market outperformance and sees rising demand for AI infrastructure, integration and execution services strengthening the company’s long-term growth opportunity. As AI adoption expands across industries, CDW appears well-positioned to benefit from customers’ increasing need for scalable, end-to-end technology solutions.
Taking a Look at CDW’s Competitors
Vertiv Holdings Co (VRT - Free Report) remains leveraged to rising data center power and thermal needs as AI deployments drive higher infrastructure density and faster build cycles. In first-quarter 2026, the company showed continued demand and execution, with organic sales growth led by the Americas and higher profitability supported by productivity and price-cost. Management raised 2026 guidance and is investing in capacity, services and engineering, while acquisitions extend capabilities in liquid cooling and heat rejection. A strengthened balance sheet following investment-grade ratings and refinancing supports this investment cycle. For the second quarter of 2026, Vertiv expects net sales of $3.25 billion to $3.45 billion (20% to 24% year-over-year growth).
ServiceNow, Inc. (NOW - Free Report) is embedding AI, data connectivity, workflow execution, security and governance into its commercial tiers, with Context Engine grounding AI decisions in live enterprise context. The company is expanding agentic capabilities through offerings such as Autonomous Workforce and Build Agent Skills, which allow developers to deploy custom agents directly onto the platform with built-in controls. Management continues to frame ServiceNow as an AI control tower addressing a total addressable market above $600 billion, supporting a multi-year opportunity across IT, employee, CRM and security workflows. Now Assist demand remains a key driver, with management stating it is on track to exceed the 2026 target of $1 billion in ACV.
CDW Price Performance, Valuation and Estimates
Shares of CDW have gained 8% in the past three months against the Computers - IT Services industry’s decline of 8.9%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Valuation-wise, CDW seems attractive, as suggested by the Value Score of B. CDW trades at a forward 12-month price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 12.31, below the industry’s 16.51.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CDW’s earnings for 2026 has been revised marginally upward over the past 60 days.
View the Zacks #1 Rank List
Image: Bigstock
Can AI Infrastructure Demand Fuel CDW's Growth in 2026?
Key Takeaways
CDW Corporation (CDW - Free Report) is benefiting from growing demand for AI infrastructure as organizations move beyond experimentation and begin deploying AI in production environments. In the first quarter of 2026, the company delivered strong results driven by AI-related investments and ongoing infrastructure modernization. Customers across industries increased spending on networking, storage, servers, power and cooling solutions as they worked to support AI workloads and address supply constraints.
This demand contributed to a 9% year-over-year increase in net sales, with infrastructure hardware emerging as a major growth driver. CDW also reported strong software demand, particularly for platforms focused on AI readiness, productivity, collaboration and security.
The company believes the shift from AI exploration to large-scale implementation plays directly to its strengths. As organizations deploy AI, they face increasing challenges related to infrastructure design, data management, security, governance and operational execution. CDW’s full-stack model, which combines hardware, software, advisory services and implementation expertise, enables customers to build and manage AI environments more effectively. Management highlighted that AI adoption is driving demand not only for compute resources but also for services that help customers integrate AI into existing technology environments and achieve measurable business outcomes.
CDW is expanding its AI capabilities through internal initiatives and strategic partnerships. The company continues to embed AI across its operations through programs aimed at improving productivity, sales effectiveness and operational efficiency. In addition, CDW recently established a relationship that provides customers access to high-performance AI infrastructure through a flexible GPU-as-a-service model, helping address growing demand for accelerated computing resources. Management stated that AI is increasing wallet share opportunities while also attracting new customers that require broader technology integration capabilities.
CDW expects AI-related investments to remain an important growth catalyst throughout 2026. While management remains cautious about macroeconomic uncertainty and supply-chain dynamics, it continues to expect market outperformance and sees rising demand for AI infrastructure, integration and execution services strengthening the company’s long-term growth opportunity. As AI adoption expands across industries, CDW appears well-positioned to benefit from customers’ increasing need for scalable, end-to-end technology solutions.
Taking a Look at CDW’s Competitors
Vertiv Holdings Co (VRT - Free Report) remains leveraged to rising data center power and thermal needs as AI deployments drive higher infrastructure density and faster build cycles. In first-quarter 2026, the company showed continued demand and execution, with organic sales growth led by the Americas and higher profitability supported by productivity and price-cost. Management raised 2026 guidance and is investing in capacity, services and engineering, while acquisitions extend capabilities in liquid cooling and heat rejection. A strengthened balance sheet following investment-grade ratings and refinancing supports this investment cycle. For the second quarter of 2026, Vertiv expects net sales of $3.25 billion to $3.45 billion (20% to 24% year-over-year growth).
ServiceNow, Inc. (NOW - Free Report) is embedding AI, data connectivity, workflow execution, security and governance into its commercial tiers, with Context Engine grounding AI decisions in live enterprise context. The company is expanding agentic capabilities through offerings such as Autonomous Workforce and Build Agent Skills, which allow developers to deploy custom agents directly onto the platform with built-in controls. Management continues to frame ServiceNow as an AI control tower addressing a total addressable market above $600 billion, supporting a multi-year opportunity across IT, employee, CRM and security workflows. Now Assist demand remains a key driver, with management stating it is on track to exceed the 2026 target of $1 billion in ACV.
CDW Price Performance, Valuation and Estimates
Shares of CDW have gained 8% in the past three months against the Computers - IT Services industry’s decline of 8.9%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Valuation-wise, CDW seems attractive, as suggested by the Value Score of B. CDW trades at a forward 12-month price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 12.31, below the industry’s 16.51.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CDW’s earnings for 2026 has been revised marginally upward over the past 60 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
CDW currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.