Big Boom in Construction (Stocks to Buy)

Housing starts may be slowing down in 2026, but construction activity isn’t dead—it’s shifting. We look to the broader construction ecosystem and highlight where the real growth drivers (and traps) are hiding.

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You’ll Learn

Why “sluggish housing starts” doesn’t mean construction is over
Residential demand may be cooling (especially condos), but commercial, industrial, and infrastructure spending can follow a different cycle—and sometimes surge when housing stalls.

What changed from 2025 to 2026 (and why the second half matters)
Mike explains how early-2025 strength gave way to slower demand, weaker condo appetite, slower population growth, and cautious investors waiting out tariffs and political uncertainty.

The real drivers behind construction profits: rates, costs, and inventory
You’ll also learn why construction is capital-intensive, rate-sensitive, and margin-sensitive—where cheap debt helps, but rising rates can hurt both builders and buyers.

How to spot a bull trap in homebuilders and construction stocks
When everything looks “green,” it can still be a setup—especially if inventory builds, demand fades, and projects stop moving.

Two risks that hit industrial/infrastructure contractors hard

Backlog risk: cancellations and delays can wipe out “future growth” overnight.
Contract risk: long-term projects can destroy margins if costs aren’t priced correctly.

How AI becomes a construction story (not just a tech story)
Data centers, power grids, utilities expansion, and power generation require engineering, construction, and specialized equipment—creating opportunities outside the tech sector.

A quick investor lens on specific construction names

Bird Construction (BDT.TO): broad exposure and growth from defense/healthcare/nuclear/data centers—but Mike flags the importance of looking beyond the last 2–3 years of results.
Aecon Group (ARE.TO): strong long-term infrastructure narrative, but past contract-cost issues show how quickly profitability can fall apart.

Why Mike prefers engineering firms over pure construction firms
Engineering companies can participate across the full project lifecycle (plan, build, maintain, decommission). That “multi-stage” revenue stream often makes them more resilient.

WSP Global vs. Stantec: the dividend angle matters
WSP has strong business momentum but prioritizes acquisitions over dividend growth; Stantec fits dividend-growth investors better—so portfolio fit matters as much as company quality.

Home Depot & Lowe’s: the patience trade after the renovation boom
Same-store sales and average ticket size tell the story. Post-COVID, people still shop—but they’re doing smaller projects, slowing the Dividend Triangle.

Construction-adjacent picks most investors forget
Richelieu Hardware, Fastenal, Finning, Toromont, and Paccar all benefit from construction cycles—sometimes with more diversified exposure than homebuilders.

Mike’s core approach: don’t “surf one wave”
Instead of betting on a single construction narrative, he starts with the Dividend Triangle and looks for strong metrics—especially when sentiment is negative.

How the free Dividend Rockstar List helps you build a buy list faster
Use it to filter for companies with revenue growth + earnings growth + dividend growth, then do deeper analysis on a smaller set of higher-quality candidates.