3 Stocks Helping Build Tomorrow's Data Centers

Key Points

• Data center buildouts are inevitable, and three stocks will play key roles in this new infrastructure activity, creating upside opportunities.
• Wall Street analysts see future upside in these names, betting on a new run higher.
• Institutional players are buying more of these companies ahead of the potential expansion.

A quiet wave is poised to capture the stock market’s attention, having already done so for government officials and select traders who are well-informed about developments before they become headline news. This new wave is centered on the next phase of the technology sector, one that involves creating an entirely new infrastructure out of pure necessity.

As the United States prioritizes its onshoring of artificial intelligence capabilities, primarily for commercial and national security reasons, one undeniable truth will face everyone in the space. The reality is that today’s energy infrastructure cannot handle the electricity demand from all the new data centers being built to support tomorrow’s cloud computing and artificial intelligence model training.

That’s why today’s list of stocks will be useful, as they are the ones supporting the construction of these data centers. By keeping names like DuPont de Nemours Inc. NYSE: DD, Caterpillar Inc. NYSE: CAT, and Martin Marietta Materials Inc. NYSE: MLM in a watchlist, investors will have greater odds of beating the market in the future.

DuPont Stock’s Discount Creates New Opportunities

Out of the names in this list, DuPont stock offers the greatest gap to its relative 52-week high level, as it now trades at only 78% of it. This creates enough room for it to reach back into historically proven valuation levels for investors to start considering it possible under the current narrative.

DuPont’s role in the data center buildout is straightforward; its many products are used in industrial applications, especially in infrastructure projects in early and expanding stages. This is why some savvy investors have decided that enough is enough for the stock’s decline into discounted levels and have taken action.

Such as those from the Vanguard Group, who, as of early August 2025, boosted their holdings of DuPont stock by 1.6%, bringing their entire position to a high of $3.3 billion or 11.4% ownership in the entire company. What this means is that DuPont now has the capital backing and stewardship of an activist investor like Vanguard.

Not to mention, this new position also acts as a vote of confidence in the stock’s recovery back to previous highs, an opportunity that Wall Street analysts recently took advantage of. With a consensus Moderate Buy rating and valuation for $88.3 per share, a few analysts decided to take that average a step higher beginning in mid-July 2025.

Now analysts like Arun Viswanathan from the Royal Bank of Canada see DuPont stock as an Outperform with a $94 per share valuation, implying it can rally by about 35% from where it trades today and flirt back with its 52-week high levels.

Caterpillar Stock: The Heart of New Infrastructure Buildouts

As the second company to receive payment, Caterpillar arguably deserves to trade within 90% of its 52-week high, given the bullish sentiment and momentum that have investors wondering what the market is pricing in for the company through this rewarding price action.

More than just wondering, investors can look at what Wall Street is already doing as Caterpillar reported its latest quarterly earnings figures. Like DuPont, Caterpillar’s consensus rating is for a Moderate Buy with $444 as its fair value. However, some analysts decided that wasn’t enough after crunching the latest financial figures.

Some of them now see Caterpillar valued at over $500 per share, such as Tami Zakaria from J.P. Morgan Chase, in her Buy rating and $520 per share valuation. This outlier call implies that Caterpillar stock can break into a new 52-week high and rally by roughly 27% from where it trades today.

This current setup in Caterpillar would explain why the stock’s short interest declined by 8.3% over the past month, an initial sign of bearish capitulation as short sellers have to weigh in the implications of new data center construction demand and Caterpillar’s role in it.

The Leader for a Reason: Martin Marietta

Following in the same cadence, Martin Marietta stock now trades at 95% of its 52-week high for a reason. Before Caterpillar is contracted or DuPont’s products are ordered, a foundation must have the right materials for commercial construction. That’s where this company comes into play first.

Being first also means getting paid first, which is why the market’s early reaction to its valuation and price is crucial. At this point, however, Martin Marietta can be either a gauge for investors or a continued momentum play that calls for Wall Street analysts to revise the way they see it today.

In terms of consensus, analysts now see Martin Marietta as a Moderate Buy valued at $620.8 per share, which is roughly fair value considering it trades at $600.5 per share now. This makes sense as the data center theme is becoming more adopted, and Martin Marietta is such an obvious play in that world.

However, DA Davidson analyst Brent Thielman now sees it as a Buy valued at $700 per share (as of mid-August 2025) for a net upside potential of 16.6%. Since the company could effectively make a new 52-week high, investors could come to expect new breakout buying, such as Geode Capital’s recent build-up of a position worth $831.3 million as of early August 2025.