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NVT vs. APH: Which Electrical Infrastructure Stock is a Better Buy?
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Key Takeaways
Amphenol's IT datacom sales surged 89% year over year in Q2, driven by AI infrastructure demand.
Amphenol's Q2 sales rose 55% to $8.8 billion, while orders jumped 94% to $10.7 billion.
nVent Electric expects $2 billion-plus data center sales in 2026, but tariffs could pressure margins.
nVent Electric (NVT - Free Report) and Amphenol (APH - Free Report) are two key players in the electrical equipment and connectivity industry. They benefit from growing demand for data centers, electrification and industrial upgrades.
nVent Electric mainly sells electrical enclosures, connections and protection products used across industrial, commercial and infrastructure markets, including data centers. Amphenol designs and manufactures electrical, electronic and fiber-optic connectors and interconnect systems for a wide range of industrial and technology applications.
Both NVT and APH are positioned to benefit from long-term infrastructure and data-center investment trends. However, from an investment point of view, one stock offers a more favorable outlook than the other right now. Let’s break down their fundamentals, growth prospects, market challenges and valuation to determine which stock offers a more compelling investment case.
The Case for nVent Electric Stock
nVent Electric is seeing strong demand from data centers as spending on artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure continues to rise. NVT expects the infrastructure vertical to post strong double-digit growth in 2026, supported by higher AI-related data center investments. Further, the company expects data center sales to exceed $2 billion in 2026, more than double from 2025 levels.
Growth is coming from liquid cooling, cable management and engineered buildings. NVT is also serving a broad customer base, including hyperscalers, neo-clouds and multi-tenant data centers. The company ended the second quarter with a $2.5 billion backlog, and management sees data center orders remaining strong in the third quarter of 2026.
The growing use of AI is adding another source of demand. Due to rising computing needs, AI data centers require more power, which is leading to rising investment in power infrastructure. NVT serves utilities directly as well as through distribution partners. The company sees opportunities in engineered buildings and other infrastructure used around data centers as well. This gives the company an opportunity to benefit from higher power demand beyond its direct data center business.
NVT is also adding capacity to meet rising demand. The company expects to spend about $130 million on capital expenditures in 2026, up 40% year over year. Most of the higher investment is going toward capacity for data centers, power utilities and supply-chain resilience. The company opened its Blaine facility in Minnesota earlier in 2026, which effectively doubled its liquid-cooling capacity. Further, management said another expansion is needed and announced the Blaine 2 facility, which is expected to open in the first half of 2027.
However, tariff costs remain a significant near-term risk for nVent Electric as the company expects the impact of tariffs to reach approximately $100 million in 2026, up from its previous estimate of $80 million. In the second quarter, tariffs had a more than $30 million impact, putting pressure on costs as nVent Electric continues to expand production and invest in data center and power utility capacity. While nVent Electric expects to offset these costs through pricing, supply-chain productivity and other operational measures, continued tariff pressure could weigh on margins and profitability if cost increases cannot be fully passed on to customers.
The Case for Amphenol Stock
Amphenol is benefiting from strong demand in its IT datacom market, supported mainly by rising spending on AI infrastructure. The market represented 43% of Amphenol’s sales in the second quarter of 2026. Sales in this market surged 89% year over year and 22% sequentially, driven by accelerating demand for products used in AI applications.
The company expects IT datacom demand to remain strong in the third quarter. Amphenol expects sales in the market to increase in the mid-teens sequentially as investments in AI data centers continue to rise. Growth in traditional IT datacom equipment from enterprise and cloud customers is also expected to support the business. Management said customers are demanding more high-speed copper, fiber optic and power interconnect solutions as AI systems become more complex.
Amphenol is also seeing benefits from its CommScope acquisition in the IT datacom market. Management said CommScope’s IT datacom business nearly doubled year over year, with strong growth from AI applications. IT datacom is now expected to account for just under half of CommScope’s total sales in 2026 compared with about one-third in 2025. Amphenol also raised its 2026 sales outlook for CommScope to $4.6 billion from $4.1 billion.
AI demand is translating into strong overall financial results for Amphenol. Second-quarter sales rose 55% year over year to a record $8.8 billion, while orders increased 94% to a record $10.7 billion. Amphenol is increasing capacity to support the expected growth in AI-related demand. Management said the company currently sees no significant bottlenecks limiting its ability to serve customers, while capital spending is expected to remain at the high end of its normal 3-4% range and could be slightly higher in the second half of 2026.
How do Earnings Estimates Compare for NVT & APH?
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for NVT’s 2026 and 2027 EPS is pegged at $5.13 and $6.39, respectively. The estimates for 2026 and 2027 have remained unchanged over the past 30 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for APH’s 2026 and 2027 EPS is pinned at $2.66 and $3.27, respectively. The estimates for 2026 and 2027 have been revised upward by 3 cents and 9 cents, respectively, over the past seven days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
NVT vs. APH: Price Performance and Valuation
Year to date, nVent Electric shares have rallied 44.9%, and shares of Amphenol have risen 14.3%.
NVT vs. APH: YTD Price Return Performance
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Currently, NVT is trading at a forward sales multiple of 3.86X, lower than Amphenol’s forward sales multiple of 4.80X. APH’s higher valuation reflects strong investor confidence in AI-driven IT datacom demand, putting it above NVT in terms of valuation, reflecting the high growth expectations of the company in the long term.
NVT vs. APH: Forward 12-Month P/S Ratio
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Conclusion: APH Has an Edge Over NVT
Both nVent Electric and Amphenol are benefiting from higher spending on AI data centers and infrastructure. However, nVent Electric faces higher tariff costs, which could put pressure on margins if the company cannot fully offset these costs through pricing and productivity measures.
In contrast, Amphenol is seeing stronger growth in its IT datacom business, supported by rising AI infrastructure spending, record sales and orders, and strong demand for high-speed connectivity products. Further, APH’s valuation reflects high growth expectations, as the company remains well positioned to benefit from rising AI-driven IT datacom demand over the long term.
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NVT vs. APH: Which Electrical Infrastructure Stock is a Better Buy?
Key Takeaways
nVent Electric (NVT - Free Report) and Amphenol (APH - Free Report) are two key players in the electrical equipment and connectivity industry. They benefit from growing demand for data centers, electrification and industrial upgrades.
nVent Electric mainly sells electrical enclosures, connections and protection products used across industrial, commercial and infrastructure markets, including data centers. Amphenol designs and manufactures electrical, electronic and fiber-optic connectors and interconnect systems for a wide range of industrial and technology applications.
Both NVT and APH are positioned to benefit from long-term infrastructure and data-center investment trends. However, from an investment point of view, one stock offers a more favorable outlook than the other right now. Let’s break down their fundamentals, growth prospects, market challenges and valuation to determine which stock offers a more compelling investment case.
The Case for nVent Electric Stock
nVent Electric is seeing strong demand from data centers as spending on artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure continues to rise. NVT expects the infrastructure vertical to post strong double-digit growth in 2026, supported by higher AI-related data center investments. Further, the company expects data center sales to exceed $2 billion in 2026, more than double from 2025 levels.
Growth is coming from liquid cooling, cable management and engineered buildings. NVT is also serving a broad customer base, including hyperscalers, neo-clouds and multi-tenant data centers. The company ended the second quarter with a $2.5 billion backlog, and management sees data center orders remaining strong in the third quarter of 2026.
The growing use of AI is adding another source of demand. Due to rising computing needs, AI data centers require more power, which is leading to rising investment in power infrastructure. NVT serves utilities directly as well as through distribution partners. The company sees opportunities in engineered buildings and other infrastructure used around data centers as well. This gives the company an opportunity to benefit from higher power demand beyond its direct data center business.
NVT is also adding capacity to meet rising demand. The company expects to spend about $130 million on capital expenditures in 2026, up 40% year over year. Most of the higher investment is going toward capacity for data centers, power utilities and supply-chain resilience. The company opened its Blaine facility in Minnesota earlier in 2026, which effectively doubled its liquid-cooling capacity. Further, management said another expansion is needed and announced the Blaine 2 facility, which is expected to open in the first half of 2027.
However, tariff costs remain a significant near-term risk for nVent Electric as the company expects the impact of tariffs to reach approximately $100 million in 2026, up from its previous estimate of $80 million. In the second quarter, tariffs had a more than $30 million impact, putting pressure on costs as nVent Electric continues to expand production and invest in data center and power utility capacity. While nVent Electric expects to offset these costs through pricing, supply-chain productivity and other operational measures, continued tariff pressure could weigh on margins and profitability if cost increases cannot be fully passed on to customers.
The Case for Amphenol Stock
Amphenol is benefiting from strong demand in its IT datacom market, supported mainly by rising spending on AI infrastructure. The market represented 43% of Amphenol’s sales in the second quarter of 2026. Sales in this market surged 89% year over year and 22% sequentially, driven by accelerating demand for products used in AI applications.
The company expects IT datacom demand to remain strong in the third quarter. Amphenol expects sales in the market to increase in the mid-teens sequentially as investments in AI data centers continue to rise. Growth in traditional IT datacom equipment from enterprise and cloud customers is also expected to support the business. Management said customers are demanding more high-speed copper, fiber optic and power interconnect solutions as AI systems become more complex.
Amphenol is also seeing benefits from its CommScope acquisition in the IT datacom market. Management said CommScope’s IT datacom business nearly doubled year over year, with strong growth from AI applications. IT datacom is now expected to account for just under half of CommScope’s total sales in 2026 compared with about one-third in 2025. Amphenol also raised its 2026 sales outlook for CommScope to $4.6 billion from $4.1 billion.
AI demand is translating into strong overall financial results for Amphenol. Second-quarter sales rose 55% year over year to a record $8.8 billion, while orders increased 94% to a record $10.7 billion. Amphenol is increasing capacity to support the expected growth in AI-related demand. Management said the company currently sees no significant bottlenecks limiting its ability to serve customers, while capital spending is expected to remain at the high end of its normal 3-4% range and could be slightly higher in the second half of 2026.
How do Earnings Estimates Compare for NVT & APH?
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for NVT’s 2026 and 2027 EPS is pegged at $5.13 and $6.39, respectively. The estimates for 2026 and 2027 have remained unchanged over the past 30 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for APH’s 2026 and 2027 EPS is pinned at $2.66 and $3.27, respectively. The estimates for 2026 and 2027 have been revised upward by 3 cents and 9 cents, respectively, over the past seven days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
NVT vs. APH: Price Performance and Valuation
Year to date, nVent Electric shares have rallied 44.9%, and shares of Amphenol have risen 14.3%.
NVT vs. APH: YTD Price Return Performance
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Currently, NVT is trading at a forward sales multiple of 3.86X, lower than Amphenol’s forward sales multiple of 4.80X. APH’s higher valuation reflects strong investor confidence in AI-driven IT datacom demand, putting it above NVT in terms of valuation, reflecting the high growth expectations of the company in the long term.
NVT vs. APH: Forward 12-Month P/S Ratio
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Conclusion: APH Has an Edge Over NVT
Both nVent Electric and Amphenol are benefiting from higher spending on AI data centers and infrastructure. However, nVent Electric faces higher tariff costs, which could put pressure on margins if the company cannot fully offset these costs through pricing and productivity measures.
In contrast, Amphenol is seeing stronger growth in its IT datacom business, supported by rising AI infrastructure spending, record sales and orders, and strong demand for high-speed connectivity products. Further, APH’s valuation reflects high growth expectations, as the company remains well positioned to benefit from rising AI-driven IT datacom demand over the long term.
Currently, APH sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), giving the stock a clear edge over NVT, which carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.