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Should Amphenol Stock Be in Your Portfolio Pre-Q3 Earnings?

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Key Takeaways

  • APH's Q3 earnings are expected to jump 55.3%, with revenues projected to rise 52.4% year over year.
  • AI infrastructure demand, CommScope's optical connectivity business and defense growth are key Q3 drivers.
  • APH trades at 23.31X forward earnings versus the sector's 18.86X, while communications demand weakens.

Amphenol (APH - Free Report) is set to report its third-quarter 2026 results on Oct. 28.

The company offered third-quarter 2026 earnings guidance between $1.40 per share and $1.42 per share, indicating growth of 51-53% year over year. Following the two-for-one stock split, Amphenol revised guidance to 70-71 cents per share. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for third-quarter 2026 earnings has increased by a penny to 73 cents per share over the past 30 days, suggesting 55.3% growth from the figure reported in the year-ago quarter.

Amphenol expects third-quarter 2026 revenues between $9.3 billion and $9.4 billion, suggesting year-over-year growth in the 50-52% range. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for third-quarter revenues is pegged at $9.44 billion, indicating an increase of 52.4% from the figure reported in the year-ago quarter.

Consensus Estimate Trend

 

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Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

 

Amphenol’s earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in all the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 11.76%.
 

 

Amphenol Corporation Price and EPS Surprise

Amphenol Corporation Price and EPS Surprise

Amphenol Corporation price-eps-surprise | Amphenol Corporation Quote

 

Let’s see how things have shaped up for the upcoming announcement.

Factors to Drive Amphenol’s Q3 Results

Amphenol’s third-quarter 2026 results are expected to have benefited from accelerating investments in artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, driving robust demand for high-speed copper, fiber-optic, and power interconnect solutions. The IT datacom business, accounting for 43% of second-quarter revenues, registered 89% year-over-year growth and 63% organic growth. APH expects third-quarter IT datacom revenues to increase in the mid-teens sequentially, supported by AI data center expansion, hyperscaler investments and growing demand for traditional IT equipment from enterprise and cloud customers. 

Strong contribution from the CommScope acquisition, particularly in advanced optical interconnect solutions for AI data centers, is expected to have driven top-line growth. CommScope’s IT datacom business nearly doubled year over year in the second quarter, reflecting accelerating demand for optical connectivity. Higher sales volume, improving operational efficiency at CommScope and greater customer penetration are expected to have supported profitability in the to-be-reported quarter. 

Moreover, increasing defense electronics investments and demand for advanced interconnect solutions across military applications are expected to have benefited APH’s top-line growth. Amphenol anticipates low-double-digit sequential growth in third-quarter Defense revenues, supported by strong customer demand and expanded production capacity. Commercial aerospace revenues, which grew 21% organically in the second quarter, are expected to have increased modestly sequentially, benefiting from rising aircraft production and greater electronic content in next-generation aircraft.

Third-quarter performance is also expected to have benefited from new customer product launches across smartphones, laptops and wearable devices. The mobile devices business has been benefiting from continued demand for antennas, interconnect products and advanced mechanisms. Amphenol expects approximately 20% sequential revenue growth in the third quarter, driven by the initial ramp-up of new customer programs. Resilient demand across diversified industrial applications, including factory automation, medical technology and building connectivity, is expected to have benefited revenues. Automotive revenues are also expected to have remained stable sequentially, supported by increasing electronic content in vehicles and growing adoption of electrified drivetrains.

However, Amphenol’s third-quarter 2026 results are likely to face pressure from weaker demand in communications networks. The company expects revenues from this market to decline in the mid-teens sequentially during the third quarter. Moreover, the absence of additional tariff recoveries, following an $80 million benefit in the second quarter of 2026, could have partially offset sequential margin expansion.

APH Shares Lag Sector, Trades at a Premium

Amphenol shares have appreciated 9.7% year to date (YTD), underperforming the Zacks Computer and Technology sector’s return of 14.1%. 

APH has outperformed TE Connectivity (TEL - Free Report) and Belden (BDC - Free Report) , but lagged Corning (GLW - Free Report) YTD. While Corning shares have returned 41.3%, TE Connectivity and Belden shares have dropped 8.5% and 10.6%, respectively, over the same time frame.

APH Stock’s Price Performance

 

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Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

 

APH stock is trading at a premium, as suggested by the Value Score of C. In terms of the forward 12-month price/earnings, APH is trading at 23.31X, higher than the broader sector’s 18.86X, TE Connectivity’s 15.75X and Belden’s 10.52X. However, Amphenol is trading below Corning’s multiple of 29.75.

APH Stock Trades at a Premium

 

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Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

 

AI Infrastructure Demand Aids APH’s Prospects

APH’s prospects are expected to benefit from accelerating investments in AI infrastructure and the rising complexity of next-generation computing architectures. Increasing GPU and custom AI accelerator deployments require greater bandwidth, higher power delivery and more sophisticated interconnect technologies. As customers require increasing amounts of copper, optical and power connectivity, Amphenol is well-positioned to capture growing interconnect content across successive generations of AI systems.

Amphenol’s diversified interconnect portfolio provides a significant competitive advantage as AI computing architectures evolve. The company holds strong positions in high-speed copper connectivity, fiber-optic interconnect solutions and power distribution technologies. The CommScope acquisition is expected to remain a major long-term growth driver by significantly expanding Amphenol’s optical interconnect capabilities and relationships with data center customers. Rising defense spending globally and increasing electronic content in next-generation military and commercial aircraft are other tailwinds.

Conclusion

AI-driven IT datacom expansion, CommScope’s optical connectivity business, and higher defense demand appear to be the strongest near-term growth drivers for Amphenol. Moreover, rising interconnect content per AI system, a diversified technology portfolio, and improving operational efficiency provide the principal opportunities for sustained revenue and earnings growth.

APH currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) and a Growth Score of B, a favorable combination that offers a strong investment opportunity, per the Zacks Proprietary methodology. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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