Valmont Industries, Inc.’s VMI shares have rallied 34.1% year to date. While the company has underperformed the Zacks Steel - Pipe and Tube industry's rise of 40.1%, it topped the S&P 500's gain of 10.4%.
The rally has been driven by Valmont’s successful implementation of operational improvement strategy, robust demand in the Utility end-market, increased 2026 earnings guidance and upward revisions in earnings estimates that have strengthened the company’s long-term growth outlook.
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Let’s take a look at the factors that are driving VMI stock.
Robust Utility Demand and Margin Gains Drive VMI's Upside
Valmont Industries' rally has been primarily driven by robust utility infrastructure demand and the company's operational improvement initiatives. The Infrastructure segment continues to benefit from a multi-year investment cycle supported by grid modernization, electrification and rising electricity demand from AI-driven data centers.
Management expects approximately $1.4 trillion of U.S. grid investments through 2030, creating a strong pipeline for transmission, distribution and substation projects. This resulted in healthy backlog growth, improving revenue visibility and higher confidence in sustained demand.
At the same time, VMI has significantly strengthened profitability through restructuring, productivity improvements and strategic capacity expansion. Corporate expenses declined as restructuring initiatives streamlined operations.
Brownfield expansion projects added approximately $95 million in annual revenue capacity. The company has also removed production bottlenecks, implemented AI-enabled scheduling and planning tools, and continued operational excellence initiatives that have improved manufacturing efficiency. These efforts have driven some of the strongest Infrastructure segment margins in recent years while positioning the company to capitalize on rising utility demand.
Reflecting the combined benefits of demand trends and improved execution, management raised its 2026 earnings guidance and increased Infrastructure segment revenue expectations. With expanding capacity, higher operating efficiency, improving margins and sustained exposure to long-term utility infrastructure investments, VMI remains well positioned to deliver higher revenue and earnings growth over the coming years.
VMI’s Zacks Rank & Other Key Picks
VMI currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Some other top-ranked stocks in the Basic Materials space are Albemarle Corporation ALB, Carpenter Technology Corporation CRS and Avino Silver & Gold Mines Ltd. ASM.
While ALB sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present, CRS and ASM carry a Zacks Rank #2 each. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ALB’s 2026 earnings is pinned at $12.98 per share, indicating a 1,743.04% year-over-year increase. Its earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the trailing four quarters and missed one, with an average surprise of 74.5%. ALB’s shares have jumped 90.5% over the past year.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CRS’ 2026 earnings is pegged at $10.56 per share, indicating a rise of 41.18% year over year. Its earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, with an average surprise of 8.95%.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ASM’s current fiscal-year earnings is pinned at 34 cents per share, indicating a 17.24% year-over-year increase. Its earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, with an average surprise of 125%. ASM’sshares have gained 86.4% over the past year.
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Valmont Industries, Inc. (VMI): Free Stock Analysis Report
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).