$IESC (+7,76 %) (no investment recommendation as I am invested myself)

A question of love @Multibagger has inspired me to present IES Holding to you once again.

He asked me whether it makes sense to invest in a company that is largely dependent on the development of AI infrastructure. This is where IES Holding comes into play, as its diversification reduces dependency enormously.

With the targeted acquisitions, IESC is diversifying its portfolio at both supply and customer level, creating resilience and stability in all market phases. The year 2024 serves as proof: while the Residential segment recorded a 6% slump in sales (the share of sales was 50%), the other segments grew by 18% to 63%, resulting in overall growth of 18%.

IES is also gaining market share in many business areas with increasing margins. A comparison with the strongest competitors also underpins the pricing power. Sales have increased by 27 percent in the last 2 quarters (competition 12 to 21 percent. Added to this is an impressive margin expansion from the low single-digit range to 13 percent today. This margin is not only industry-leading, but has not yet ended.

😘

My dears, I love these small companies in which the founder holds the majority of shares. And therefore still looks after his "baby".

A key success factor for small companies in particular is strong management with "skin in the game". Together with his brother, founder and former CEO Jeffrey Gendell holds around 55% of the outstanding shares via the jointly managed investment company Tontine. Jeffrey Gendell gained experience in his early years at companies with a focus on capital markets, corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions.

My dears, 😘

I continue to love these quality companies that have grown steadily over the years and have proven that they know their business.

As you can see at ⬇️Link Traderfox Scoring. Here IES scores 1️⃣3️⃣ for quality. And for growth even with 1️⃣5️⃣

It is well known that high returns on capital lead to high share price returns. Over the years, IESC has achieved industry-leading returns on capital of 15 to 30 percent. Even established competitors such as EMCOR, MasTec or Quanta Services cannot keep pace with these values.

The foundation for this success is based on a well-regulated internal structure and outstanding management. With now 16 company acquisitions in 4 end markets, IESC combines organic growth with strategic acquisitions. This has resulted in a five-fold increase in turnover over the last 10 years.

While the CEO concentrates on capital allocation and strategic investments, the individual divisions operate independently in line with the common goals. Another advantage of the decentralized structure is that the positive experiences of individual divisions are transferred to others in order to become more successful together.

My dears, you can find the great full company presentation at the following link ⬇️

https://www.ftd.de/boerse/aktien/iesc-aktie-die-ies-holdings-ist-ein-stiller-gewinner-der-digitalisierung/

⬇️ Traderfox Scoring

https://aktie.traderfox.com/visualizations/US44951W1062/DI/ies-holdings-inc

$META (+1,22 %)

Hello folks,

AI is not just a pipe dream, AI is a reality.

And the DeepSeek narrative from a year ago has also disappeared.

I hope you are well invested in the shovel manufacturers who are building the infrastructure for the big 7. And supply them with electricity.

Meta secures nuclear power for data centers

$CEG (+3,61 %)
$VST (+2,55 %)

https://www.tagesschau.de/wirtschaft/energie/meta-atomstrom-100.html

$TLNE

Talen Energy - Power producer signs long-term contract with Amazon Web Services.

https://aktienmagazin.de/blog/analystenempfehlungen/talen-energy-stromproduzent-schliest-langfristigen-vertrag-mit-amazon--152080.html

$EQT (-1,99 %)

EQT becomes energy supplier of the next AI era - Pennsylvania relies on gas instead of wind or solar.

$GEV (+0,77 %)

GE Vernova is supplying seven @Simpson Homer City with seven high-performance turbines, while Kiewit Power is responsible for construction. This infrastructure lays the foundation for Pennsylvania to serve as a reliable supply location for hyperscalers and AI providers.

https://aktienmagazin.de/nachrichten/hot-news/eqt-wird-energielieferant-der-nachsten-ki-ara-pennsylvania-setzt-auf-g-149150.html

HOCHTIEF subsidiary builds mega data center for Meta in the USA

$HOT (+2,63 %)

https://www.hochtief.de/aktuelles-medien/pressemitteilungen/pressemitteilung/hochtief-tochter-baut-in-den-usa-mega-rechenzentrum-fuer-meta

data centers

$NVDA (+3,75 %)

NVIDIA Corp ('US67066G1040')

A dominant player: Hardly any AI data center runs without Nvidia

$TLNE

Talen Energy Corp ('US87422Q1094')

Talen Energy - Power producer signs long-term contract with Amazon Web Services.

$APLD (+1,93 %)

Applied Digital Corp ('US0381692070')

Applied Digital: AI data centers as growth driver

$LITE (+5,98 %)

Lumentum Holdings Inc ('US55024U1097')

Lumentum Holdings is a beneficiary of demand for data center infrastructure

$BTDR (-1,22 %)

Bitdeer Technologies Group ('KYG114481008')

Bitdeer grows rapidly: hashrate doubled, but losses still rise significantly

$ALAB

Astera Labs Inc ('US04626A1034')

Astera Labs goes from insider tip to profit rocket! The AI connectivity star conquers billion-dollar markets!

$IFX (+3,1 %)

Infineon Technologies AG ('DE0006231004')

Infineon convinces with green technology in a difficult environment

$TTR1 (+3,94 %)

technotrans SE ('DE000A0XYGA7')

Technotrans: Ice cold back on the road to success

$HOT (+2,63 %)

Hochtief AG ('DE0006070006')

Hochtief - Infrastructure investments worth billions are growth drivers.

$FLEX (+2,51 %)

Flex Ltd ('SG9999000020')

Flex: Contract manufacturer with power - Data center boom drives share to new heights.

$ORCL (-0,39 %)

Oracle Corp ('US68389X1054')

DEPOT BRIEFING: Meta Platforms (META;i) to build giga data center. Investments in AI infrastructure remain high.

$PRIM (+6,31 %)

Primoris Services Corp ('US74164F1030')

DEPOT BRIEFING: Meta Platforms (META;i) to build giga data center. Investments in AI infrastructure remain high.

$VST (+2,55 %)

Vistra Energy Corp ('US92840M1027')

DEPOT BRIEFING: Meta Platforms (META;i) to build giga data center. Investments in AI infrastructure remain high.

$EQT (-1,99 %)

EQT Corp ('US26884L1098')

EQT becomes energy provider of the next AI era - Pennsylvania turns to gas instead of wind or solar

$AMZN (+0,81 %)

Amazon.com Inc ('US0231351067')

Strategy on multiple fronts! Amazon cools GPUs, invests in Anthropic and fills shopping carts during Prime Days!

$STX (+2,09 %)

Seagate Technology Holdings PLC ('IE00BKVD2N49')

Seagate - Irish to significantly improve margins and sales again in H2 with new technology.

$ECL (+0,33 %)

Ecolab Inc ('US2788651006')

With 3D TRASAR Technology against water waste: How Ecolab is making data centers smarter.

$AAOI (-1,59 %)

Applied Optoelectronics Inc ('US03823U1025')

Applied Optoelectronics reports production milestone and growth in the data center sector

$IESC (+7,76 %)

Data centers as growth engine: IES Holdings continues to grow strongly and shines with increasing margins!

$VRT (+4,57 %)

WHERE KI CALCULATES, VERTIV COOLS: LIQUID COOLING SYSTEMS FUEL RECORD RESULTS AND A FORECAST INCREASE FOR 2025!

$EME (+2,55 %)

ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE PROVIDER EMCOR BENEFITS FROM US INFRASTRUCTURE PROGRAM AND DATA CENTER MAINTENANCE

$FIX (+5,77 %)

COMFORT SYSTEMS BENEFITS FROM THE CONSTRUCTION OF NEW DATA CENTERS AND CHIP FACTORIES - EARNINGS RECORD IN THE SEASONALLY WEAKEST PERIOD!

In a small town in Louisiana, Mark Zuckerberg is having the largest artificial intelligence data center ever built for Meta on agricultural land. It is the size of 70 soccer pitches and cost 10 billion dollars.

Rayville is a town in north-eastern Louisiana in the USA that is experiencing a declining population. In the 2020 census, the population was 3347, down almost 21 percent from 4234 in 2000.

However, this is now likely to change. The state regulatory authorities approved a controversial plan to supply power to the largest artificial intelligence data center to date, which is being built by technology company Meta. This clears the way for the construction of three gas-fired power plants. This was reported by the portal "Nola".

The project is being built on a former agricultural area of around 70 soccer pitches. It is expected to cost around 10 billion dollars (approx. 8.6 billion euros). Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has announced plans to further expand the area so that it would be comparable to the size of Manhattan. The company is plunging headlong into the high-risk race for supremacy in the emerging AI sector.

"We chose Louisiana as the location for our largest data center to date for a variety of reasons, including excellent infrastructure connectivity, a strong labor base and a reliable power grid," said a Meta spokeswoman.

Criticism of Meta plans

However, the project in Richland Parish has met with criticism due to its enormous energy requirements, among other things. Davante Lewis was the only person to vote against the plan. He said the agreement leaves fundamental questions unanswered that are "too bitter to swallow", "Nola" quotes him as saying.

https://www.focus.de/finanzen/in-ort-mit-3347-einwohnern-entsteht-fuer-10-milliarden-dollar-groesstes-ki-rechenzentrum_e9ff4911-4348-48b8-9903-9038e11fcefa.html

Hello my dears,

the love @yngfinn has asked me how I find shares. I would like to share my answer with you.

@yngfinn

Hello my dear,

as I have enough positions in my portfolio at the moment, I am no longer looking so intensively for new companies. I don't trade and am more long-term oriented.

My approach is quite different.

By sector:

I often look at which sectors and areas are currently on the move. Or what the areas of the future are, such as robotics, defense and aerospace, AI, etc.

But I also look at which sectors and countries in my portfolio are undervalued.

Or also in which sectors I see a need to catch up because they have been driven down unjustifiably. Like the healthcare sector, for example 🍊.

I watch reports and documentaries. Like exploring the oceans and seas. And discovering Kraken Robotic $PNG (+1,55 %) and Norbit $NORBT (-0,47 %) .

https://getqu.in/Ey45a0/

After Powel's speech on Friday, for example, it would now make sense to look for real estate and homebuilders. Like Buffet did with his stock Dr. Horten $DHI (-0,02 %) .

Unfortunately, the ongoing wars show the importance of drones and drone defense.

But also the increasing importance in agriculture (I have already written a post about this).

https://getqu.in/SdXvMm/

In the end, my choice here was $AVAV (+5,08 %) AeroVironment. And the contract manufacturer $KIT (+1,1 %) Kitron.

In the future-oriented robotics sector, I don't really want to invest in overvalued stocks such as $TSLA (-0,21 %) Tesla or the contract manufacturer $JBL (+5,81 %) Jabil. I see Japan as very innovative here. As shown by $7012 (+0,34 %) Kawasaki shows. This is how I discovered the blade supplier $6481 (+0,85 %) THK (there was a post from me about this).

https://getqu.in/fZudqX/

By country:

When Iran attacked Israel, I took advantage of the dip and picked Israeli stocks.

For example, I discovered Gilat $GILT (+2,12 %) for example.

But as a long-term investor, I still see the USA in the lead. I also like to take a look at small and mid caps.

But I also often look at countries that are not quite so much in focus. Scandinavia or Italy.

I have found $LTMC (-0,27 %) Lottomatica and $CAMX (+0,28 %) Camurus.

I often only look at the companies by momentum from the various indices in these countries.

By company:

I also often look at which companies are currently the stars on the stock market. Like Rheinmetall, for example, but then I don't go into the overvalued shares, but look for suppliers, i.e. blade suppliers. That's how I came across Kitron $KIT (+1,1 %) for example. Kitron as a contract manufacturer for the defense sector.

Or when Novo Nordisk was still a star, I discovered the Novo supplier $YPSN (-0,9 %) discovered.

Nvidia supplier $HY9H (+7,06 %) sk Hynix.

Where is the capex of the companies going?

Based on this question, I came across the AI infrastructure companies $IESC (+7,76 %) IES Holding and $VRT (+4,57 %) Vertiv.

The weakness of one company makes other companies strong.

The weakness of Boeing makes $AIR (-0,23 %) and $ERJ (+1,56 %) strong. That's how I came across Embraer and $MTX (+1,38 %) MTU.

https://getqu.in/4hiSbt/

Research and reports, such as on coinbase $COIN (+8,5 %) (CAUTION never buy based on a story).

https://getqu.in/OIiwhP/

Good company figures with a growth story could also be a reason. As for example with $GILD (+1,22 %) Gilead.

https://getqu.in/iF8BDY/

Takeover fantasies:

Takeover rumors usually mean that the share price of the company to be taken over rises.

As was the case with $AWE (+3,19 %) Alphawave was the case.

https://getqu.in/1NPNWI/

Or with Iveco $IVG (-0,1 %)

https://getqu.in/WJnLFp/

https://getqu.in/VnK4Xk/

CAUTION: Something can always go wrong here and send the share price plummeting.

I experienced this myself with i robot when the UK did not agree to a takeover by Amazon.

No matter in which area. My approach is usually to pick out the momentum stocks. I then look at the multiples, news, order situation and, of course, the company.

Compounders and long-term runners:

In my core, I only invest in quality stocks with a moat.

Here it makes sense not to buy at the ATH, but on the dip.

Multiples:

What is important to me with multiples:

-profitable company, or in the next year

Profitable.

Preferably double-digit profit growth with a falling P/E ratio.

-Percentage profit growth is higher than sales growth.

-good and rising EbiT margin.

-PEG below or around 1

-increasing free cash flow taking into account capex.

My dears,

I hope my brief summary of my approach perhaps offers you a little added value.

Please let me know in the comments.

Suggestions for improvement are also welcome. 😘😘

$IESC (+7,76 %)

IES Holdings Inc. published its results for the third financial quarter of 2025 on August 1, 2025 and reported a strong overall performance despite mixed results in the individual business segments.

IES reported revenue of $890 million for the third quarter, an increase of 16% compared to the same period last year.

Operating profit grew even more strongly with a year-on-year increase of 24% to $111.9 million.

Earnings per share reached $3.81, up 43% from $2.67 in the same period last year, while adjusted earnings per share rose 45% to $3.95.

In the first nine months of fiscal 2025, IES generated revenue of $2.47 billion, an increase of 17% compared to the same period in 2024. Year-to-date operating income reached $279 million (+24%), while earnings per share increased 47% to $10.03.

The company's order backlog, a key indicator of future revenue potential, reached a record $2.1 billion as at June 30, 2025, compared to $1.7 billion in the previous year. Remaining performance obligations, a GAAP measure of future revenue to be recognized from existing contracts, amounted to USD 1.3 billion.

IES Holdings' performance varied significantly among its four business segments, with Communications and Infrastructure Solutions showing notable growth, while Residential declined.

The Communications segment was the standout performer, with revenue increasing 56% to $299.2 million in the third quarter of 2025 and operating income more than doubling with a 128% increase to $47.8 million.

Since the beginning of the year, this segment has recorded sales growth of 45% and an 80% increase in operating profit.

The Infrastructure Solutions segment also performed strongly, with sales up 27% to $129.5 million and operating profit up 65% to $32.6 million in the quarter.

In contrast, the Residential segment, which remains IES' largest revenue contributor, reported an 8% decline in revenue to $346.1 million and a 24% decline in operating income to $33.4 million. This indicates that challenges in the residential real estate market are weighing on this segment.

The Commercial & Industrial segment reported mixed results: Sales grew by 19% to $115.4 million, while the operating result was almost stagnant with a decline of 1% to $12.9 million.

The detailed breakdown by segment is shown in the following chart:

IES Holdings has a strong financial position with cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities of $175.2 million as of June 30, 2025, compared to $44.9 million in the prior year. Total assets increased from $1.16 billion in the prior-year period to $1.47 billion.

The company's balance sheet shows liabilities totaling USD 647.3 million and equity of USD 781.4 million. The net financial position (cash and cash equivalents and securities less liabilities) amounted to USD 155.2 million, which indicates a strong liquidity position.

The company's adjusted EBITDA for the third quarter was $125.7 million, up 29% from $97.7 million in the same period of fiscal 2024. For the nine months ended June 30, 2025, adjusted EBITDA reached $317.9 million, up 30% from $245.2 million in the prior-year period.

The record order backlog of USD 2.1 billion indicates high revenue visibility for the coming quarters, particularly in the Communications and Infrastructure Solutions segments, which have the strongest growth trajectories.

$IESC (+7,76 %)

IES Holdings Inc. ( IESC ) reported a profit for the second quarter that was up on the previous year

The company's profit amounted to 70.7 million US dollars, or 3.50 US dollars per share. In the previous year, it amounted to USD 47.0 million or USD 2.29 per share.

Excluding special effects, IES Holdings Inc. reported an adjusted profit of USD 66.6 million or USD 3.30 per share for this period.

The company's turnover increased by 18.2% in this period from USD 705.8 million in the previous year to USD 834.0 million.

The profits of IES Holdings Inc. at a glance (GAAP):

- Net income: USD 70.7 million compared to USD 47.0 million in the previous year.

- Earnings per share: USD 3.50 compared to USD 2.29 in the previous year.

- Sales: USD 834.0 million compared to USD 705.8 million in the previous year.

(No investment advice, I am invested here myself)

https://www.rttnews.com/3534851/ies-holdings-inc-reports-increase-in-q2-profit.aspx

Hello everyone, AI is becoming more and more important in our lives. However, this also means that massive investments continue to be made.

I see AI glasses $QCOM (+1,97 %) further ahead.

$NVDA (+3,75 %) makes a lot of things possible here.

In terms of infrastructure, I see $VRT (+4,57 %) and $IESC (+7,76 %) as one of the beneficiaries.

Cooling of data centers $MOD (+4,05 %) and $FIX (+5,77 %) .

And as mentioned in the report

$META (+1,22 %)
$GOOG (+0,67 %)
$MSFT (+0,3 %)
$AAPL (-0,28 %)

Meta brings the AI functions of its sunglasses to Europe, Gemini's live image recognition becomes accessible to all, and Grok also gets virtual eyes

First we chatted with the AI bots, then we talked to them - and if the manufacturers have their way, we will also show them our surroundings in future so that they can comment on them. What was previously a niche program is now set to find its way into the masses. And in Europe too.

Following the European launch of Meta AI, the Facebook group Meta is now also offering the smart functions of its Rayban sunglasses, which are already available in the USA, in various European countries, including Austria. Initially, it is possible to ask the sunglasses equipped with Meta AI a question by voice input, and the answer is then output via the sunglasses' small speakers. In the near future, the glasses' integrated cameras will also be used to ask questions about visible objects in the environment.

But it's not just Meta, Google is also expanding its potential user base for a similar feature. All Android users will be able to use the image recognition and screen sharing function in Gemini Live free of charge, which was previously reserved for owners of Pixel 9 or Galaxy S25 smartphones. Here, too, the AI answers questions about things it sees via the camera or on the screen. And Elon Musk's Grok now also has digital eyes, albeit only via the iPhone app for the time being.

Of course, where there is light, there is also shadow, and once again this means data protection. Concerns have been expressed, particularly with regard to Meta's smart Rayban glasses, that people could not only be filmed but also identified by the AI. This is not science fiction: in the fall of 2024, Harvard students were already able to determine the personal data of strangers in real time using commercially available Meta smart glasses.

All eyes on Google, efforts at Apple

Another topic that has caused a stir in recent days: the antitrust proceedings against Google. And in this case, an eye is also being cast on the topic of AI, as the company could use the technology to further strengthen its position. Among other things, Google is said to be paying "enormous sums of money" to Samsung to have Gemini installed as the standard AI app on its smartphones. Should the Google business be split up, an AI competitor has already signaled its interest: OpenAI would like to take over the Chrome browser.

In this context, it was made public that Gemini now has 350 million monthly and 35 million daily active users. In October, it still had nine million daily active users and 90 million monthly active users. Despite the growth, however, the figures are still lower than those of the competition: Meta AI has 500 million monthly users, while OpenAI has 400 million.

However, Google has also attracted the attention of competition authorities on this side of the Atlantic. The EU Commission is investigating Google's AI overviews after publishers recorded losses in traffic and advertising revenue following their introduction.

These are problems that Apple does not have: There, they are making more of an effort to catch up. One of the ways in which the new Siri engineering boss Mike Rockwell is hoping to achieve this is by bringing people into the team who previously worked on the Vision Pro headset. Some of the once promised features of Apple Intelligence are still awaited. Previously, Apple had advertised AI functions in commercials that did not even exist, but after various complaints, the company is now much more cautious with its promises.

New tools and features

In terms of new features and tools, one of the things we can look forward to this week is that Google Workspace will receive components from NotebookLM. People with Gemini Advanced accounts can use Google's video AI Veo 2 in Gemini. Developers can test Google's hybrid reasoning model Gemini 2.5 Flash.

Microsoft, on the other hand, wants to integrate Copilot into the Xbox app. OpenAI has entered into a partnership with the Washington Post and is incorporating their content into ChatGPT. Sam Altman's team also enables developers to integrate OpenAI's image generator into their own applications via API. The o3 and o4-mini versions can now determine exactly where a particular photo was taken.

There is also good news from European providers. For example, the Swedish start-up Lovable, which specializes in vibe coding, has released version 2.0 of its tool, which even non-experts with no coding experience can use to build simple applications. Among other things, the tool now includes more options for cooperation and security checks.

There is also news from Paris. It was only in the fall that Thomas Wolf, Chief Science Officer (CSO) at Hugging Face, told me that, in addition to providing AI models and applications, the platform also wanted to get involved in the field of robotics, and now these plans are becoming more concrete: With the acquisition of Pollen Robotics, the French want to offer open source robots, namely the software as well as construction plans and 3D models.

(Jan 25 (Reuters) - The cloud computing arm of Alphabet Inc (GOOGL. O), opens new tab, announced on Thursday that it had entered into a partnership with startup Hugging Face, to facilitate the development of artificial intelligence (AI) software on the company's Google Cloud.25.01.2024)

https://www.derstandard.de/story/3000000266847/ki-google-chrome-chatgpt

$IESC (+7,76 %)

According to TR today 14:30 - Q4 figures.

The share price also looks like it, but unfortunately I can't find a report on the quarterly figures on any of the platforms I use.

Do any of you have more information?

Hello everyone, with Donald Trump and Elon Musk in office, I'm expecting volatile times ahead. I have therefore carried out a check on my portfolio to determine how solid my foundation (core) still is.

The following criteria were used for the check

Quality check

The quality check examines shares for the quality of the business model and the stability of the balance sheet

Enduring qualities

The long-term indicator checks whether share prices are rising steadily.

Outperformer check

Every investor is confronted with the question of whether to invest money passively in ETFs or in individual shares. A share should rise by more than 10% per year for an investment to be worthwhile.

KUV monster

When companies are hyped and everyone knows about the quality of a company, the return potential is usually low. The top 5% of the most highly valued shares according to the KUV criterion are problematic.

The following companies from my portfolio turned out to be

buy and leave.

Alphabet $GOOG (+0,67 %) Modine Manuf. $MOD (+4,05 %) Chipotle $CMG (+0,57 %)

Microsoft $MSFT (+0,3 %) Copart $CPRT (-1,5 %) Vertex $VRTX (-0,12 %)

Constellation Software $CSU (+0,86 %) Man and machine $MUM (+0,27 %)

Corcept Therap. $CORT (+3,8 %) Tetra Tech $TTI (+2,56 %) TransDigm Group $TDG (+0,21 %)

IES Holding $IESC (+7,76 %) ASML $ASML (+6,08 %)

Infrastructure continues to run under Trump.

Whether Trump or Harris, America needs data centers and infrastructure. America First.

First leg in the door.

https://ies-corporate.com/#:~:text=IES%20designs%20and%20installs%20integrated,clients%20in%20the%20United%20States.