Toronto, May 25, 2026 – Celestica Inc. saw its Toronto-listed shares rise on Monday, as investors continued to focus on the company's role in artificial intelligence hardware and data center infrastructure. The stock gained 2.61% to C$521.27, reaching an intraday high of C$521.88, though it remained below its 52-week peak of C$591.25. The move came as the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq were closed for the U.S. Memorial Day holiday, leaving the Toronto Stock Exchange as the only active market for Celestica shares.
Market Context and Broader Trends
The S&P/TSX Composite Index hit a record high in late morning trading, rising 0.7% to 34,778.98, according to Reuters. Materials stocks led gains, while oil prices eased on renewed optimism surrounding U.S.-Iran talks. Brian Madden, chief investment officer at First Avenue Investment Counsel, expressed caution, noting that "repeated false hopes" had emerged before and that he was not fully convinced a deal was imminent.
Celestica's Performance and Outlook
Celestica's shares advanced without any new company-specific news over the weekend. The latest update on its investor relations page was a May 19 release about director elections, preceded by a May 13 update on Fort Worth operations and an April 29 announcement of an AI-scale networking product. Traders remained focused on the overarching theme of robust demand for AI data center infrastructure.
The company reported first-quarter revenue of $4.05 billion, a 53% increase from the prior year, with adjusted earnings per share of $2.16. CEO Rob Mionis described the quarter as "strong" and highlighted "accelerating growth" among Connectivity & Cloud Solutions (CCS) customers. Celestica now forecasts 2026 revenue of $19.0 billion and adjusted EPS of $10.15.
The CCS segment, which encompasses communications, servers, and storage, saw revenue surge 76% to $3.24 billion in Q1. Hardware Platform Solutions revenue also climbed 63% to approximately $1.7 billion. Additionally, Celestica announced a co-packaged optics (CPO) Ethernet switch program for a hyperscaler customer, with production expected to ramp up in 2027.
Broader Tech and AI Landscape
Technology stocks led gains on the TSX last week, which closed Friday at its highest level since March 2, rising 1.9% over five sessions. "The market focus has shifted more toward what's happening in the tech world," Allan Small, senior investment advisor at iA Private Wealth, told Reuters. Nvidia's May 20 results reinforced this trend, with the chipmaker reporting record first-quarter revenue of $81.6 billion, up 85% year-over-year. This underscores the ongoing AI buildout, which continues to funnel investment into hardware and networking supply chains. Celestica, while not a direct competitor to Nvidia, is often viewed as a focused play on manufacturing and networking within this trend.
Competitive Landscape and Risks
Celestica faces intense competition from firms such as Flex, Jabil, Benchmark Electronics, Hon Hai, Plexus, and Sanmina, as noted in its annual report. With U.S. markets closed on Monday, Canadian-traded CLS shares were more exposed than usual. However, the company's risk factors include shifts in customer capacity plans, customer concentration, supply bottlenecks, program delays, tariffs, trade restrictions, and utility constraints in data centers. Any slowdown in hyperscaler budgets or delays in 800G and 1.6T networking could undermine the bullish thesis.
U.S. trading resumes Tuesday, allowing the NYSE-listed shares to react to Toronto's price action. Bank earnings, which Reuters reports will begin Wednesday, may also influence the Canadian market this week. Celestica supporters will be watching to see if AI infrastructure demand continues to support the company's elevated 2026 guidance.
