Sterling vs. MasTec: Which Construction Stock Looks Stronger Now?

Ongoing public and private investment continues to underpin demand across the U.S. infrastructure construction landscape, with activity spanning transportation networks, utility systems, energy infrastructure, and mission-critical development tied to data centers and industrial expansion. Within this backdrop, Sterling Infrastructure STRL and MasTec, Inc. MTZ have emerged as two well-positioned contractors, each highlighting strong project activity, healthy customer demand, and a focus on disciplined execution across their respective platforms.While both companies are benefiting from long-term infrastructure spending trends, their operating focus differs. Sterling is more concentrated on higher-margin site development and mission-critical projects, while MasTec offers broader exposure across communications, power delivery, energy and pipeline infrastructure. Furthermore, easing financial conditions following recent monetary policy shifts could provide an additional tailwind for infrastructure investment and project financing activity. Let’s dive deep and closely compare the fundamentals of the two stocks to determine which one looks stronger now.The Case for STRL StockThis Texas-based infrastructure services provider is seeing continued strength across its core operations as large-scale project activity remains elevated. Demand tied to mission-critical site development is supporting growth in E-Infrastructure, led primarily by data center and industrial work. Sterling continues to benefit from customer investment in complex, long-duration projects that require disciplined execution and integrated site development capabilities.The company’s E-Infrastructure business remains the primary growth driver, supported by rising demand for large and complex mission-critical projects. Data centers continue to anchor activity within this segment, with revenues from this market rising more than 125% year over year in the third quarter of 2025. The company’s focus on data centers, e-commerce distribution and manufacturing facilities positions it well within higher-growth infrastructure markets, where project scale and execution reliability are increasingly critical.Despite these favorable trends, some near-term headwinds persist. Residential-related activity remains pressured as affordability challenges continue to weigh on housing demand. In addition, elevated project complexity and permitting timelines across certain large developments can introduce variability in project timing, creating short-term noise even as underlying demand remains intact.Looking ahead, the company expects its backlog and project pipeline to support multi-year visibility through 2026. Sterling reported a $2.6 billion backlog in the third quarter, representing a 64% year-over-year increase, and highlighted additional visibility from negotiated awards and future phases of ongoing megaprojects. With E-Infrastructure accounting for the majority of this pipeline and mission-critical demand expected to remain solid, the company believes it is well-positioned to sustain growth as large projects advance into later construction phases.The Case for MTZ StockThis Florida-based infrastructure construction company continues to benefit from broad-based demand across communications, clean energy, power delivery, and pipeline infrastructure markets. MasTec reported strong operating momentum through the third quarter of 2025, supported by higher activity levels across multiple end markets and solid execution on large, complex projects. The company emphasized that diversified exposure and scale are helping support consistent project flow amid ongoing infrastructure investment trends.Strength was particularly evident across the company’s non-pipeline segments. During the third quarter of 2025, communications, clean energy, and power delivery all delivered solid growth, driven by rising wireless and wireline deployments, renewable energy construction, and grid modernization work. For the first nine months of 2025, Power Delivery segment revenues increased 16.8% year over year, reflecting continued investment in transmission and distribution upgrades as electricity demand rises and utilities modernize aging infrastructure. Segment backlog also expanded, reinforcing visibility tied to long-duration utility projects.However, the company continues to face some near-term challenges. Project timing and permitting issues have contributed to variability in certain large programs, particularly within Power Delivery. In addition, shifts in customer capital spending and project mix have weighed on near-term margin progression, even as underlying demand across energy and communications markets remains supportive.Looking ahead, MTZ expects backlog strength to support multi-year growth visibility. As of Sept. 30, 2025, the total 18-month backlog reached a record $16.78 billion, representing a 21.1% year-over-year increase. With ongoing grid investment, expanding communications infrastructure and improving pipeline visibility, the company believes it is well-positioned to benefit from sustained infrastructure spending as projects advance into future construction phases.Stock Performance & ValuationAs witnessed from the chart below, in the past six months, Sterling’s share price performance stands above MasTec and the Zacks Construction sector.Image Source: Zacks Investment ResearchConsidering valuation, Sterling is currently trading at a discount compared with MasTec on a forward 12-month price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio basis.Image Source: Zacks Investment ResearchComparing EPS Estimate Trends of STRL & MTZSTRL’s earnings estimates for 2026 have remained unchanged in the past 60 days at $11.95 per share. This indicates expected earnings growth of 14.6% year over year on projected revenue growth of 19.1%.STRL's EPS TrendImage Source: Zacks Investment ResearchMTZ’s earnings estimates for 2026 have remained unchanged in the past 60 days at $8.2 per share. This indicates expected earnings growth of 28.3% year over year on projected revenue growth of 8.4%.MTZ’s EPS TrendImage Source: Zacks Investment ResearchWhich Construction Stock Looks More Compelling Now?Sterling and MasTec both stand to benefit from sustained U.S. infrastructure spending, but their fundamentals suggest different near-term investment profiles. Sterling is gaining momentum from its growing exposure to mission-critical projects, an improving mix toward higher-margin E-Infrastructure work, and stronger earnings visibility tied to data centers and industrial development. MasTec offers broader diversification across communications, power delivery, energy, and pipeline infrastructure, supported by a record backlog, but faces greater variability tied to project timing, permitting, and margin progression on large-scale work.As both Sterling and MasTec currently carry a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), Sterling’s stronger recent share price performance and discounted valuation make it the comparatively better construction stock at this time. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.5 Stocks Set to DoubleEach was handpicked by a Zacks expert as the #1 favorite stock to gain +100% or more in the coming year. While not all picks can be winners, previous recommendations have soared +112%, +171%, +209% and +232%.Most of the stocks in this report are flying under Wall Street radar, which provides a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor.Today, See These 5 Potential Home Runs >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Sterling Infrastructure, Inc. (STRL): Free Stock Analysis Report MasTec, Inc. (MTZ): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks