EMCOR and Thor Industries have been highlighted as Zacks Bull and Bear of the Day

For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – August 17, 2026 – Zacks Equity Research shares EMCOR Group, Inc. EME as the Bull of the Day and Thor Industries THO as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on Vertiv VRT, Broadcom AVGO and Nvidia NVDA.

Here is a synopsis of all five stocks.

Bull of the Day:

EMCOR Group, Inc. is a leading electrical and mechanical contractor with deep exposure to the AI data-center buildout and other key megatrends across energy and beyond. EME averaged 14% revenue growth over the last five years, while roughly quadrupling its earnings.

The AI data-center infrastructure specialist posted a strong beat-and-raise second quarter at the end of July, with its recent wave of upbeat earnings revisions landing the stock a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

EME is projected to follow up its impressive five-year run of growth with another back to back years of double-digit earnings and revenue expansion.

EMCOR stock has crushed its sector, its industry, and the S&P 500 over the last 15 years, soaring ~3,600%. The stock recently found support at several key technical ranges after a healthy pullback off its highs. It is down ~10% from its peak, and its valuation looks enticing.

The company is helping physically build key pillars of the 21^st century economy, profiting directly from the AI data center spending boom, energy and infrastructure growth, reshoring, and beyond.

EME, which pays a dividend and boasts a strong balance sheet with near-zero debt, is a great way to ride the AI-boosted capex spree that shows no signs of slowing. Just last week Nvidia reached a deal with BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, and other Wall Street giants to raise $500 billion to fund the AI-infrastructure build out.

Bank of America followed up Nvidia’s AI capex spending news with its own plan to inject $250 billion into the AI-boosted infrastructure push focused on data centers, energy, and critical minerals. This backdrop is why McKinsey projects that $7 trillion will be spent globally on AI-centric capex by 2030.

Best Buy and Hold AI Infrastructure Stocks: EME

EMCOR is a mechanical and electrical construction services giant that also operates across industrial and energy infrastructure and building services. EMCOR boasts that it handles everything from “constructing a hyperscale data center to providing 24/7 support for a cutting-edge hospital to implementing the latest energy efficiency technologies.”

EME serves a wide range of end markets, including commercial and governmental buildings, industrial facilities, healthcare, education, and most importantly AI data centers and technology campuses.

Its Electrical Construction and Facilities Services unit (30% of 2025 sales) spans electrical power transmission and distribution, fiber optic lines, low-voltage systems, and more.

The U.S. Mechanical Construction and Facilities Services segment (42%) features ventilation, air conditioning, water and wastewater treatment, central plant heating and cooling, steel fabrication, erection and welding, filtration, and much more. EMCOR’s smaller segments provide building operations and maintenance services (18%) as well as industrial maintenance and repair work for refineries and petrochemical plants (7%).

EME posted consistent revenue and earnings growth over the past 15 years outside of a Covid-based pullback. EMCOR’s growth (especially earnings) soared over the last five years as it profits from converging megatrends across technology/AI, energy and utilities infrastructure, reshoring, and more.

EME averaged 14% revenue growth over the last five years, climbing from $9.90 billion in FY21 to $16.99 billion in 2025. More impressively, it nearly quadrupled its GAAP earnings during this stretch, skyrocketing from $7.06 a share to $28.19 per share—its adjusted earnings jumped 266%.

Investors must remember AI arms race is creating a once-in-a-generation (or longer) boom in the physical economy that EMCOR and its infrastructure peers are profiting from. 

Wall Street already pushed the S&P 500 to new highs after the healthy pullback because the money keeps pouring in and earnings growth is stellar.

The hyperscalers alone are projected to spend roughly $700 billion or more in AI-related capex in 2026 and ramp up again in 2027, after spending ~$400 billion in 2025. Globally, companies will pour $7 trillion into data-center capex by 2030 (McKinsey), with $1.3 trillion aimed at energy.

Nvidia last week reached a deal with Wall Street giants including BlackRock and Goldman Sachs to help raise $500 billion to fund the AI-infrastructure build-out.

The half-trillion-dollar in new AI infrastructure spending is the latest bullish sign for all things related to the AI spending spree. Bank of America then followed the Nvidia’s AI capex spending news with its own plan to inject $250 billion into the AI-boosted infrastructure across data centers, energy, and critical minerals.

This AI-fueled spending is helping line the pockets of EMCOR and others that are physically building the new pillars of the 21^st century economy and beyond.

The Top-Ranked AI Infrastructure Stock’s Growth Outlook

EMCOR grew its earnings by 35% YoY in the second quarter to $9.06 a share, crushing our estimate by 25%. It closed the quarter with remaining performance obligations of $17.14 billion, up 44% from the year-ago period.

The strong quarter and its growing backlog helped it raise its full-year earnings and revenue guidance. Its consensus earnings estimates have jumped 13% for 2026 and 2027 since its Q2 release on July 30.

EMCOR is projected to grow its adjusted earnings another 28% in 2026 and 12.4% in 2027 on the back of 20% and 10%, respective sales growth.

EME has also consistently topped our bottom line estimates in the past five years, outside of a few misses.

Buy the Soaring Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) Stock Before It Breaks Out?

EMCOR shares have soared ~600% over the past five years as part of a stellar market and sector-crushing run over the last 15 (~3,600%) and 25 years (~8,600%). EME has climbed ~40% YTD, yet it has fallen roughly 10% from its early May highs.

The stock has already bounced back alongside the broader market. EME found buyers near its long-term 50-week and the key technical range below at the end of July.

EMCOR is back above its 50-day and on the verge of overtaking another critical level that could lead to a breakout to new all-time highs.

EME downturn, coupled with its strong earnings outlook, has it trading at 24.1X forward earnings. This marks a ~23% discount to its highs and just an 11% premium to its Building Products - Heavy Construction industry and a 16% premium to the S&P 500, even though EMCOR has climbed ~1,400% in the past 10 years vs. its industry’s 540% and benchmark’s 285%.

On top of that, EME’s strong balance sheet is highlighted by its near-zero debt and surging shareholders’ equity. Plus, eight of the 11 brokerage recommendations Zacks has are “Strong Buys.” 

Bear of the Day:

Thor Industries boasts that it is the world’s largest manufacturer of recreational vehicles.

The RV giant’s revenue and earnings have dropped over the last several years as it faces multiple headwinds from higher interest rates and slowing consumer spending to the extremely difficult-to-compete-against Covid-era boom.

What's Going On with the RV Giant?

Thor Industries is the biggest manufacturer of recreational vehicles in the world, making and selling hundreds of RV models across Airstream, CrossRoads, Dutchmen, Heartland, and tons of other brands.

The Indiana-based company builds a variety of RVs in North America and Europe and sells those vehicles along with related parts and accessories to independent, non-franchise dealers throughout the U.S., Canada, and Europe.

THO posted strong growth between 2010 and 2018. Then the quick COVID shutdown, mixed with the Wall Street and economic boom sparked by the reopening and rock-bottom interest rates, helped Thor grow its revenue by 51% in its fiscal 2021 and another 32% in FY22.

The RV maker roughly doubled its revenue between fiscal 2020 and 2022. This growth was always going to be impossible to keep up with since it was sparked by a confluence of events that we might not see again.

Thor posted three straight years of declining sales since then. The RV company’s earnings follow a similar boom-and-bust pattern.

Thor lowered its full-year guidance when it reported its Q3 FY26 results in early June. The company cited an array of “persistent macroeconomic pressures weighing on the broader RV market” as the reasons for its subdued outlook.

The list of setbacks includes a “challenged retail environment driven in large part by low consumer confidence, cautious independent dealer ordering patterns and ongoing tariff-related and inflationary cost dynamics that continue to negatively impact industry-wide performance.”

Its downward earnings revisions land THO a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell) right now.

Investors likely want to stay away from the stock until Thor shows signs of a turnaround. Plus, THO shares have fallen 23% YTD as part of a sideways run over the last decade. 

Additional content:

AI Infrastructure Stocks: Billions of Reasons to Stay Bullish

The AI spending race shifted into a higher gear during this earnings season, with Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet and Meta reporting roughly $170 billion in capital expenditures (CapEx).

Microsoft reported $41 billion of CapEx, Alphabet spent $44.9 billion and raised its full-year CapEx forecast, Meta deployed $31.1 billion while maintaining its outlook, and Amazon led the group with $54.2 billion in property and equipment purchases.

The spending is also showing returns, muting much of the previous skepticism we’ve all grown accustomed to in recent years. Microsoft is monetizing enterprise AI, Amazon and Alphabet are benefiting from accelerating cloud demand, and Meta’s AI-enhanced advertising business is helping fund its infrastructure buildout.

The spending surge creates a powerful demand tailwind across the AI infrastructure supply chain, with companies like Vertiv and Broadcom reflecting major beneficiaries.

Vertiv Cools Data Centers

Vertiv’s Q2 revenue grew 24% to $3.3 billion in its latest period, with the demand picture leading it to also raise its full-year outlook. Its power management and high-density cooling systems benefit from the rising electricity and heat management requirements of AI data centers.

The stock sports a favorable Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) thanks to favorable EPS revisions stemming from the favorable environment. Revenue revisions have unsurprisingly followed a similar bullish path, with the $13.9 billion Zacks Consensus estimate for its current fiscal year rising 21% since last August and suggesting 36% YoY growth compared to FY25.

Broadcom AI Semiconductor Revenue Surges

Broadcom’s Q2 revenue soared 48% to $22.2 billion, while AI semiconductor revenue surged an even more impressive 143% YoY to $10.8 billion on demand for custom accelerators and networking. Broadcom expects AI revenue to reach $16 billion next quarter, underscoring how strong its growth story will remain in the coming periods.

Sales estimates for Broadcom’s current and next fiscal years have been aggressively raised, with annual revenue expected to soar 66% in FY26 and 65% in FY27.

Bottom Line

Investors have hundreds of billions of reasons why to remain bullish on the AI buildout, particularly for companies like Vertiv and Broadcom, as companies continue to invest heavily in their AI futures.

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