Finance
These 3 Stocks Sit at the Intersection of Industry and Energy. Buy Them Now and Hold Forever.
Most companies fit neatly into an obvious business sector. Sometimes, however, an organization straddles two or more categorizations. And every now and then, these dually grouped outfits are fantastic investment opportunities specifically because they’re willing and able to blur the lines that usually differentiate them from others in an effort to offer the best solution to a problem.
To this end, here’s a closer look at three companies that have elegantly blurred the lines between energy and industry at a time when factories are desperate for increasingly scarce — and increasingly expensive — electricity.
Image source: Getty Images.
Not every great opportunity needs to be a leader or disruptor of a well-defined or long-established grouping. Sometimes, the key to success is breaking the mold.
Most companies fit neatly into an obvious business sector. Sometimes, however, an organization straddles two or more categorizations. And every now and then, these dually grouped outfits are fantastic investment opportunities specifically because they’re willing and able to blur the lines that usually differentiate them from others in an effort to offer the best solution to a problem.
To this end, here’s a closer look at three companies that have elegantly blurred the lines between energy and industry at a time when factories are desperate for increasingly scarce — and increasingly expensive — electricity.
Image source: Getty Images.
Navitas Semiconductor
Despite the name, Navitas Semiconductor (NVTS 1.26%) isn’t quite as much of a technology stock as it sounds. While it certainly can and does improve the functionality of personal electronics, it’s making the biggest impact in the industrial, mechanical, and utility arenas.
In simplest terms, Navitas Semiconductor makes the materials commonly used in electricity-consuming devices more efficient, enabling them to consume much less power. For smaller, consumer-oriented tech, the crux of this leap is the development of gallium nitride (GaN) power integrated circuits, such as mobile phone chargers and next-generation televisions. On a more industrial scale, Navitas’ silicon carbide is a significant upgrade over standard silicon used in equipment that requires high-voltage power, such as solar power inverters, electric vehicle power-distribution systems, industrial mechanical motors, and even utility-scale power grids. Broadly speaking, not only is silicon carbide a bit more power-efficient than ordinary silicon, but it’s far more durable, able to withstand the high heat levels generated by the 800-volt architecture that’s quickly becoming the norm for most industrial-level electrical applications, including data centers.
Navitas Semiconductor
Today’s Change
(-1.26%) $-0.19
Current Price
$14.93
Better materials may be a key part of electricity usage’s future. It’s been a wobbly business so far, though. Navitas Semiconductor’s 2025 top line was nearly halved, falling from $83.3 million in 2024 to $45.9 million. Blame inconsistent demand, which is ultimately a function of price; silicon carbide and gallium nitride technology isn’t cheap.
As is the case with most other new technologies, though, the cost of these materials is generally coming down, even if not in a straight line. That’s one of the chief reasons why Global Market Insights still expects the worldwide silicon carbide market to grow at an average annual pace of nearly 35% through 2034.
Argan
Argan (AGX +0.02%) is anything but a household name. It doesn’t make any must-have consumer products, and with a market cap of less than $10 billion, it doesn’t turn many heads either.
What it can do for its customers, however, is enormously important to them.
It’s frequently categorized as a construction firm, which is technically accurate, but doesn’t do the company or its stock justice. Argan specifically builds power production facilities for utility providers and private industrial clients alike, offering them everything from natural gas turbine installations to solar farms to battery storage infrastructure. It turned $944 million worth of revenue into $138 million in net income last year (both of which are records), up 8% and 61%, respectively.
Today’s Change
(0.02%) $0.12
Current Price
$630.82
This is still just the beginning, however. Backed by its expectation that demand for electricity is likely to swell by 25% between 2025 and 2030 and increase 78% by 2050, Argan’s backlog of business has grown from less than $1 billion in 2024 to nearly $3 billion now. Give most of the credit for that expanding list of lined-up projects to the rise and rapid proliferation of artificial intelligence data centers, of course.
And the upside of this big backlog is likely to matter much sooner than later. Analysts expect last year’s per-share profit of $9.74 to swell to $14.38 in 2027, en route to $16.64 the year after that. Given this expected earnings trajectory and its underlying revenue growth, the stock’s seemingly steep current price of $660 isn’t quite as steep as it seems for a true “forever” holding.
NuScale Power
Finally, add pre-profit NuScale Power (SMR 6.81%) to your list of stocks sitting at the intersection of industry and energy, and positioned to thrive because of it.
If you’re not familiar with it, NuScale Power designs small-scale nuclear power plants. It hasn’t technically sold any yet, mostly because the planning and installation of any power production facility can take years. The fact that it’s a nuclear power facility requires even more regulatory red tape. And technically speaking, NuScale Power’s design for its modular reactor was only fully approved by the United States’ Nuclear Regulatory Commission in May of last year. While it could tentatively market them before then, would-be customers might be understandably hesitant.
They’re now coming around, though. Romania’s state-owned Nuclearelectrica is proceeding with plans to purchase six NuScale reactors (each capable of powering roughly 100,000 homes), while ENTRA1 Energy and the Tennessee Valley Authority are also likely to select NuScale Power’s solution to add power-production capacity.
That’s not what makes NuScale such a compelling investment prospect here and now, however, or for that matter, puts it at the intersection of industry and energy. It’s that NuScale Power’s small modular reactors — or SMRs — can be built almost anywhere in just 36 months, making them suitable for companies that want to take power production into their own hands rather than rely on a utility company to provide increasingly expensive electricity. SMR solutions are expected to serve power-intensive operations ranging from desalination plants to oil refineries to, yes, AI data centers. That’s why the International Energy Agency believes up to 1,000 SMRs could be built, installed, and operational by 2050, up from only a tiny handful of small modular nuclear power plants up and running right now.
NuScale Power
Today’s Change
(-6.81%) $-0.81
Current Price
$11.02
The only arguable “catch” here is the time required for an investor’s patience to pay off. The still-nascent SMR industry isn’t likely to start generating significant revenue until at least 2030, when all the necessary approvals are made, and the construction of the initial ones can be completed. And even then, most of its growth won’t materialize until well after that.
Nevertheless, veteran investors know a stock is capable of performing in anticipation of future success, even in the absence of profits, or, for that matter, in the absence of meaningful revenue.