Data Centres Are the New Gold Rush: Here’s Where I’d Invest

Celestica is a TSX way to invest in AI’s real-world buildout, supplying the hardware and supply-chain muscle behind data centres.

Amy Legate-Wolfe

Author Bio Amy became interested in investing in 2018 after having her first daughter. After receiving a masters degree in journalism from Western University, she became frustrated that the finance industry remained a confusing place for Canadians like her: new parents, millennials, and other young people who needed to understand their finances. Now, Amy focuses on tech companies and renewable energy for growth opportunities, coupling that with long-term investing strategies and equities. She also provides investors with a daily newsletter, Canada Stock Digest, for daily market updates. Her work can also be found at Canada's National Observer, where she writes on the business side of climate action. Before joining Motley Fool Canada, Amy wrote for major news organizations including HuffPost, CTVNews.ca, and CBC. When she’s not researching investing strategies, Amy’s time is pretty much monopolized by her two wild daughters, but in what little spare time she has she loves to do yoga, go on walks with her dog, and travel with her husband. Social Media Follow Amy on LinkedIn and Canada Stock Digest. Favorite Investment Quote “October: This is one of the particularly dangerous months to speculate in stocks. The others are July, January, September, April, November, May, March, June, December, August and February.” – Mark Twain

Published June 11, 10:30 am EDT

| More on: CLS

Key Points

Celestica builds critical data-centre hardware, giving investors AI exposure beyond chipmakers and mega-cap tech.
Q1 2026 results were explosive, and management raised 2026 revenue and earnings guidance sharply.
The opportunity is real, but the stock depends on big customers and continued AI spending, so volatility is likely.

Artificial intelligence (AI) changed the game. It needs chips, yes. But it also needs servers, switches, storage, cooling, power, and a long list of companies that can turn demand into working infrastructure. Investors often chase the biggest U.S. tech names first. Yet Canadian investors also have a real TSX option sitting closer to the buildout than many realize.

That’s why Celestica (TSX:CLS) deserves a closer look.

Concept of big data flow, analysis, and visualizing complex information for artificial intelligence — Source: Getty Images

CLS

Celestica stock isn’t a data-centre landlord. It doesn’t collect rent from server farms. Instead, it helps build the technology that makes modern data centres run. The Toronto-based company provides design, manufacturing, supply-chain, and hardware platform solutions for customers in areas such as AI, cloud, hybrid cloud, networking, storage, aerospace, defence, health technology, and industrial equipment. That puts it directly in the plumbing of the AI economy.

The story feels more relevant now because AI infrastructure keeps moving from excitement to actual spending. Cloud providers need faster networking. AI workloads need custom systems. Data centres need more powerful hardware that can move huge amounts of information with less delay. Celestica stock benefits when customers want complex products built at scale, and that demand now shows up clearly in its numbers.

Into earnings

The latest results were hard to ignore. In the first quarter of 2026, Celestica stock reported revenue of US$4.05 billion, up 53% from last year. Adjusted earnings per share (EPS) reached US$2.16, while adjusted operating margin hit 8.0%. Management also raised its 2026 outlook to US$19.0 billion in revenue and US$10.15 in adjusted EPS.

Those numbers give investors a much cleaner data centre thesis than a loose “smart infrastructure” idea. Celestica’s Connectivity and Cloud Solutions segment drove the growth, with revenue up 76% year over year. That segment includes communications, servers, and storage, so it sits right where AI and cloud demand meet physical hardware.

Looking ahead

There’s another catalyst worth watching. Celestica announced a co-packaged optics Ethernet switch program with a hyperscaler customer. The product targets AI scale-out networks and uses 1.6-terabit switch silicon, optical interconnects, and liquid cooling technology. Production should start ramping in 2027. That’s not a vague AI promise. It points to the kind of next-generation networking equipment data centres need as AI models grow larger and more expensive to run.

The company also now looks more profitable than it did in past cycles. Celestica stock spent years as a lower-profile electronics manufacturer. Now, better demand, richer product mix, and stronger execution have changed how investors view the business. Today, it looks like a Canadian way to invest in the AI infrastructure chain.

Still, investors shouldn’t treat Celestica stock like a sure thing. The stock already reflects a lot of optimism. Fast growth can create high expectations, and high expectations leave little room for mistakes. Celestica stock also depends on large customers, major programs, and steady demand from cloud and technology companies. If AI spending slows, if customers delay orders, or if margins slip, the stock could pull back quickly.

Bottom line

Even with those risks, Celestica stock connects more directly to data centres, cloud spending, and AI hardware demand. Data centres may be the gold rush, but not every investor needs to buy a chipmaker or a power utility. Some of the strongest winners could come from the companies building the equipment behind the scenes. For patient investors who can handle volatility, Celestica stock looks like one TSX stock worth considering before the AI infrastructure trade gets even more crowded.