Quanta Services posts record revenue as Big Tech pours $735 billion into data centers

Everyone wants to talk about the chips. Quanta Services would like a word about the wires.

The Houston-based infrastructure contractor (NYSE: PWR) reported record quarterly revenue of $9.56 billion for the second quarter of 2026, up 41.1% from the same period a year earlier. That growth comes as Big Tech’s data center spending is pegged at $735 billion, in a framing highlighted by The Motley Fool, and every one of those facilities needs a lot of electricity delivered reliably.

The numbers behind the surge

The quarterly figure was not a one-off spike. Trailing twelve-month revenue through June 2026 reached $32.91 billion, a 26.3% increase year over year.

Full-year 2025 revenue came in at $28.48 billion, up 20.3% from 2024.

Management raised its 2026 revenue guidance to a range of $39.3 billion to $39.7 billion.

That forecast leans on a record backlog of $53.4 billion at the end of the second quarter.

There is also a broader runway. Quanta’s research findings point to a 25% increase in transmission pipeline growth, bringing that figure to $170 billion.

Why a contractor is suddenly a growth story

Quanta’s core business is electric power transmission and distribution. It builds and maintains the lines, substations and related infrastructure that get electricity from where it is generated to where it is used. Electric infrastructure solutions represent the bulk of its activity.

Alongside traditional utility clients, Quanta now works with hyperscale data center operators, the giant cloud and AI companies building facilities that consume electricity on an industrial scale.

Wall Street has noticed. Bernstein upgraded Quanta to Outperform on Sept 24, 2026, with a price target of $775. The stock has recently traded in a range of $640 to $660.

Bernstein’s case centers on Quanta’s self-performing model, meaning Quanta uses its own skilled workforce rather than farming jobs out to subcontractors. Quanta self-performs on 80-85% of its projects.

What this means for investors and the grid

The most important number here might be the backlog, not the revenue. A $53.4 billion book of signed work gives Quanta visibility that many growth companies would envy, and it explains why management felt comfortable lifting guidance.

Visibility is not the same as certainty, though. Backlog can shift if customers delay projects, if permitting drags, or if the economics of data center buildouts change.

Quanta’s current momentum is closely linked to the capital spending plans of a small group of very large technology companies, plus utilities racing to keep up with them.

With shares trading in the $640 to $660 range, Bernstein’s $775 target suggests the firm sees room above that level.

What to watch next: whether Quanta can convert its backlog into revenue on schedule, whether the 2026 guidance range holds or moves again, and whether hyperscalers keep their data center budgets on the current trajectory.