3 AI Infrastructure Plays Beyond Chipmakers

Key Points

• With semiconductor stocks like NVIDIA and Broadcom falling in the past month, investors may consider AI infrastructure companies as an alternative way to gain exposure.
• nVent Electric and Mueller Industries both reported strong revenue growth in their recent quarters despite share price declines, and analysts project meaningful upside for both stocks.
• The Global X U.S. Infrastructure Development ETF offers diversified exposure to infrastructure beyond AI through 101 holdings, modest fees, and a small dividend yield.

Shares of chip giant NVIDIA Corp. NASDAQ: NVDA are down about 13% in a month, while those of rival Broadcom Inc. NASDAQ: AVGO have fallen by roughly 8% over the same period. There may be questions about whether the recent sell-off in semiconductor names is over-exaggerated, but the fact remains that many of these stocks have fallen heading into the final weeks of the year. Investors who once relied on the momentum of hardware driving the AI industry to keep their portfolios trending upward may need to look elsewhere.

Those looking to stay connected to AI without relying on chipmakers directly can still find opportunities within infrastructure development. Though companies like nVent Electric PLC NYSE: NVT and Mueller Industries Inc. NYSE: MLI are also down in the last month, they may have potential for a sizable turnaround. Plus, a more generalized bet on infrastructure via an exchange-traded fund like the Global X U.S. Infrastructure Development ETF BATS: PAVE allows for even more diversification, with exposure to construction, materials, and industrial equipment companies beyond AI.

nVent Electric: A Discounted AI Infrastructure Growth Play

Electrical connection and management company nVent helps to ensure that power distribution needs for data centers and other critical AI infrastructure are met. While shares have fallen by over 30% in the last month, NVT trades at an earnings multiple of about 26x, making it a discounted alternative to rivals like Vertiv Holdings Co. NYSE: VRT.

Just because of the share price decline, investors may overlook the potential nVent offers, confirmed most recently in its Q3 2026 earnings. For that period, the company posted nearly 44% year-over-year (YOY) revenue growth, a solid beat of close to $82 million above analyst predictions. Earnings per share (EPS) topped estimates by 12 cents as well.

Free cash flow is also strong thanks to broad-based growth across essentially all corners of nVent's operations. The company's major acquisition of Maverick Power earlier this year has opened up new opportunities in engineered power distribution and should have a longer-term benefit on its data center business, which is already a primary growth driver.

It also continues to expand capacity and is looking ahead to a significant production ramp-up in 2027. Of course, this does depend on steady demand from the data center space in particular, so if there is a fundamental shift there, it could spell trouble for nVent. For the time being, though, analysts offer a near-unanimous Buy rating and more than 75% upside for NVT stock as a way to play AI without directly relying on chips.

Mueller Industries: A Value Play on AI Infrastructure

Metals and plastics producer Mueller provides a lot of the basic materials used in AI infrastructure buildouts, an overlooked but essential part of the industry. MLI shares are also down about 12% over the last month, but this, too, masks some of the company's strengths, as confirmed by its Q3 2026 earnings report.

Sales growth for Mueller has been robust at 32% YOY last quarter, even as earnings came up a bit short of analyst predictions. Data center building was a key driver of growth and increasing backlogs, but other commercial building activity was also a factor—this may be attractive to investors looking for firms not entirely reliant on the continuation of AI momentum.

Notably, Mueller provides a more compelling valuation than some of the other options in the AI infrastructure space because it trades at just 14x earnings. While the stock is not as widely rated by Wall Street analysts, it does enjoy three unanimous Buy ratings, plus about 37% in forecasted upside.

PAVE ETF: Diversified Infrastructure Exposure Beyond AI

For an even more diversified play, however, investors might seek out an ETF like PAVE.

With a portfolio of 101 stocks, PAVE is a broader infrastructure play that also includes raw materials producers, engineering and construction outfits, makers of heavy equipment, and more.

While a lot of infrastructure effort has been put toward AI, that is far from the only area of focus for this fund. As such, PAVE is the least direct play on AI, although it maintains some connections.

PAVE is in the middle of the road when it comes to fund fees, charging 0.47% annually. Its modest annual dividend yield of 22 cents may be an added bonus on top of price appreciation, but the real appeal of this fund likely lies in the easy access it provides to a wide array of infrastructure plays with a single trade.