HOUSTON, May 4, 2026, 17:01 CDT
- New orders at Powell Industries almost doubled in fiscal Q2, driving the backlog up to $1.8 billion.
- Profit fell short, with earnings and revenue each missing Wall Street’s expectations.
- The company landed its biggest order ever after the quarter ended—a data center award topping $400 million.
Powell Industries Inc. reported Monday that new orders for its fiscal second quarter surged 97% to $490 million, while backlog climbed to $1.8 billion. That gives the Houston-based electrical-equipment maker a clearer revenue pipeline, even as quarterly profit declined. After the quarter wrapped, Powell landed a data center order topping $400 million.
This update lands at a critical intersection of the industrial sector, where Powell operates: gear for distributing, controlling, and safeguarding electrical power. Demand is heavy—data centers, utilities, energy projects, all putting pressure on grid infrastructure. Investors are tracking if these smaller players can actually turn that surge into top-line growth, and do it without compressing margins.
Revenue for the quarter ended March 31 climbed 6% year over year to $296.6 million. But net income edged down 1% to $45.9 million, or $1.25 a diluted share, squeezed by rising SG&A and research-and-development expenses.
Orders took center stage. Powell’s book-to-bill ratio hit 1.7, measuring orders against revenue. Chairman and CEO Brett Cope described the data center contract landed after the quarter as the “largest order in Powell history.” GlobeNewswire
The quarter came in messy. Zacks Investment Research analysts were looking for $1.34 a share on $298.2 million in revenue, per an Associated Press snapshot, but Powell didn’t hit either target.
Commercial and other industrial revenue jumped 35%, Powell said. Electric utility sales climbed 14%, while oil and gas brought in 11% more. Petrochemical revenue, though, dropped 37%—underscoring the company’s continued exposure to swings in industrial spending, even as data center demand takes the spotlight.
The stock finished Monday’s session off 1.95% at $269.95, but tacked on roughly 1% in after-hours trade, according to market data. Most of the optimism tied to power demand had already been priced in, so any slip in earnings or revenue left little slack for disappointment.
Competition for investor dollars pits the company against heavyweight electrical and power-infrastructure players—Schneider Electric and GE Vernova—both flagging robust data center demand lately. Last month, GE Vernova’s Electrification unit landed $2.4 billion in data center equipment orders for the first quarter. Schneider Electric, too, logged double-digit growth in data center demand for Q1.
Powell reported a 12% increase in backlog since Dec. 31, putting it 33% higher than the same point last year. The quarter wrapped up with $544.9 million held in cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments.
Michael Metcalf, the company’s Chief Financial Officer, said Powell is looking for margins to hold steady versus last year, citing the existing backlog mix. He added that with backlog picking up pace, the company’s got some room to put money into new capacity.
Execution looms as the main risk. In its filing, Powell flagged that its backlog isn’t a sure bet for future performance—contracts are subject to change, cutbacks, or cancellation. Rising pay and R&D expenses have already dented quarterly profit. Margins could come under more pressure if big orders don’t move to shipment on schedule.
Powell has set up a conference call for Tuesday at 11 a.m. Eastern. Expect investors to zero in on when the company expects to secure the more than $400 million data center contract, as well as plans for capacity and whether the recent surge in backlog can translate into sustained order flow.
