3 “Strong Buy” Tech Stocks to Buy Now Down 20% and Hold for AI Upside
Investors may not want to chase surging AI and technology stocks that pushed the Nasdaq to new all-time highs on Tuesday as macro uncertainties continue to swirl. Higher long-term interest rates, oil and gas prices, U.S.-Iran hostilities, the midterm elections, and beyond remain near-term obstacles for the market.
The Nasdaq dropped on Wednesday as 10-year U.S. Treasury yields surged to their highest levels since July 2007 after some economic data came in hot.
It is, of course, not doom and gloom for the stock market considering that the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 are trading right near all-time highs. Plus, the AI-boosted spending spree is driving huge earnings growth and real economic expansion across tech, energy, and beyond.
Today we dive into three Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks—Celestica, Advanced Energy Industries, EMCOR Group—to buy now for impressive AI-boosted earnings and revenue growth, which are trading at least ~20% below their highs.
Best Tech and AI Picks-and-Shovels Stock to Buy Now: CLS
Celestica Inc. CLS is an electronics manufacturing services standout that builds and assembles complex electronics and technology hardware. CLS, which went public in the late 1990s, transformed from a middling electronics manufacturing services firm into a vital cog in the AI data center arms race and the wider capex boom spanning from semiconductor manufacturing to defense spending.
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The Toronto, Canada-based contract manufacturer is a high-tech picks-and-shovels stock.
The AI boom is fueling Celestica’s enterprise-level data communications and information processing infrastructure products such as routers, switches, data center interconnects, servers, and beyond. New reports predict that AI hyperscaler capex will hit $1.1 trillion in 2027, climbing from the ~$800 billion in projected 2026 capex.
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The data center infrastructure leader more than doubled its revenue between 2021 and 2025 and expanded its GAAP earnings from $0.83 a share to $7.16 a share during that period.
Peeking ahead, CLS is projected to expand its revenue by 65% in 2026 and another 57% next year to soar to ~$32 billion, up from ~$12 billion in 2025.
It is expected to grow its adjusted EPS by 87% in FY26 and 68% next year to climb from $6.05 a share to $19.01 in FY27, based on the most recent Zacks estimates. The chart above also highlights Celestica’s long-term earnings growth upside.
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Celestica’s surging EPS revisions earn the stock its Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). Wall Street is also extremely bullish on CLS stock, with 19 of the 20 brokerage recommendations Zacks has at Strong Buys.
CLS stock has soared ~4,900% in the past 15 years, more than doubling its highly-ranked Electronics – Manufacturing Services industry. This includes a 630% run over the past 24 months.
The AI-boosted stock is down ~23% from its early June highs, and it already found support at its long-term 50-week moving average. Celestica’s average Zacks price target implies 30% upside, and it’s trading at a ~62% discount to its highs, in line with Tech, and near its industry (despite its outperformance) at 21.9X forward 12-month earnings.
Buy this Top-Ranked Tech Stock Now and Hold Forever?
Advanced Energy Industries AEIS designs and makes precision power conversion, measurement, and control solutions. Its products and solutions serve customers across semiconductor equipment, networking and telecommunications, and AI data centers.
Simply put, AEIS makes the specialized power systems that turn raw electricity into tightly controlled power for complex equipment.
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The critical power conversion firm is posting explosive growth in its data center computing segment as the hyperscalers and beyond race to build out their AI infrastructure. CLS is also well diversified, with an established track record of growth long before AI.
AEIS expanded its Data Center Computing segment revenue by 107% in 2025, boosting overall revenue by 21% YoY. The company grew its GAAP earnings by 169% last year, bouncing back after YoY declines in 2024 and 2023.
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The firm posted another beat-and-raise quarter in Q2, with its upward EPS revisions landing it a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). It’s projected to grow its adjusted earnings by 75% YoY in 2026 and another 29% next year to soar from $6.41 a share in FY25 to $14.44 a share next year.
The technology company is projected to grow its revenue by 35% in 2026 and another 25% next year to reach $3 billion, more than double its 2024 total and blowing away Advanced Energy Industries’ previous $1.85 billion sales record from 2022.
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AEIS stock skyrocketed ~3,100% over the past 15 years to nearly triple Tech. The stock, which is still up ~175% in the past two years, is down ~28% from its May highs. Its average Zacks price target implies ~55% upside, and it is attempting to find support at its 50-week moving average.
Advanced Energy Industries, which also pays a dividend, is trading at a 55% discount to its highs and nearly in line with Tech at 23.9X forward 12-month earnings.
Buy EME Stock and Hold for AI and Energy Upside
EMCOR Group, Inc. EME 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.”
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The leading electrical and mechanical contractor offers investors critical exposure to the AI data-center buildout.
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%.
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EMCOR’s recent wave of upbeat earnings revisions earn the stock a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). The AI data-center infrastructure specialist is projected to follow up its impressive five-year run of growth with 20% revenue expansion in 2026 and another 11% growth next year. Plus, it is expected to boost its adjusted EPS by 28% and 13%, respectively, soaring from $25.87 a share in FY25 to $37.23 in FY27.
EMCOR shares have ripped ~3,600% higher in the last 15 years, including a ~540% charge in the past five. Investors can buy the stock down 20% from its highs as it lands buyers right at its 50-week moving average.
EME’s average Zacks price target implies ~37% upside from Wednesday’s levels. Its downturn, coupled with its EPS growth outlook, has it trading at a 31% discount to its highs at 20.9X forward earnings.
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The company is helping physically build key pillars of the 21st century economy, profiting directly from the AI data center spending boom, energy and infrastructure growth, reshoring, and beyond.
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.”
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EMCOR Group, Inc. (EME) : Free Stock Analysis Report
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).