Unsubscribe

2026 Could Be the Biggest Year for Private Markets Yet (From Darwin)

---

3 Industrial Stocks Making New All-Time Highs

Written by Dan Schmidt on February 14, 2026 

Key Takeaways

• Sector rotation has been a major market theme in 2026, and last year’s losers are quickly turning into this year’s winners.
• The industrial sector is finally benefiting from several long-term tailwinds, such as lower interest rates, a rebounding manufacturing cycle, and agentic AI adoption.
• Illinois Tool Works, Honeywell International, and Deere and Co. are three stocks hitting new all-time highs with optimistic forecasts for 2026.

The S&P 500 has been treating the 7,000 level like a bug zapper, retreating whenever the milestone approaches as if it’ll receive a shock for getting too close. But despite this frustrating market action, some previously beaten-down sectors are breaking out, and many ‘old economy’ stocks are hitting fresh all-time highs as capital rotates out of pricey tech stocks.

Industrials is one sector that fits that description, and several of its constituents are outperforming the market at the start of 2026. Today, we’ll look at three industrial stocks setting new all-time highs and explain why these likely aren’t the only records this group will be setting this year.

Three Nobel Prize winners: A convergence is coming (Ad)

Watch Now! Porter Stansberry & Luke Lango join forces to unveil:

The Three Titanic Forces Converging To Unleash A New 1776 Moment 

“We have never seen wealth created at this size and speed” MIT ResearcherClick here for the stocks to buy and sell now

Why Investors Are Rotating Toward Industrials

The industrials sector spent most of 2025 searching for its footing. But the Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSEARCA: XLI)began breaking out at the end of the year, and that rally has continued into 2026 with a nearly 13% year-to-date (YTD) gain. The market is currently undergoing a massive rotation away from AI and tech stocks, but that doesn’t fully explain the industrials breakout. Some of the other contributing factors include:

• Manufacturing Tailwinds: After two years of decline, the manufacturing sector is starting to see some of the benefits of the Federal Reserve’s rate cuts. January’s ISM Manufacturing PMI rose to 52.6, signaling expansion, and new orders grew at their fastest pace since 2022. The manufacturing sector is notoriously cyclical, and business owners hope this marks the start of another boom.
• AI and Improved Efficiency: Many industrials spent the last two years of the downturn shoring up their systems through AI advances. Agentic AI has enabled large industrial firms to automate supply chains, predict maintenance and depreciation needs, and reduce cost inefficiencies. Each of the three stocks listed has successfully implemented AI into its business model.
• Provide Infrastructure to Key Industries: Semiconductors and memory steal the headlines when it comes to AI CapEx, but data centers are still huge buildings made of steel, generators, turbines, and A/C units. Industrials benefit from the ripple-down effect of these growing needs, and judging by AI hyperscaler capex plans, demand is only going to increase from here. Additionally, increased U.S. defense spending and a rebound in the aerospace sector have provided tailwinds for the sector.

3 Industrials Breaking Out to New All-Time Highs This Year

Industrials may have quietly broken out last year, but these three companies were stuck in neutral until recently. Now they’re playing catch-up, and each has unique tailwinds or upcoming catalysts that could keep them rallying ahead of the market.

Do not ignore. Read immediately. (Ad)

Three Nobel Prize Winners expose this once-in-a-generation wealth shift:

“Don’t Say I Didn’t Warn You”

Porter Stansberry exposes how the convergence of three immense forces is about to rewrite everything about the American way of life: how you work, save, invest… it’s all about to change.Don’t be left behind. Click here now.

Illinois Tool Works: 80/20 Business Model Providing Growth in All 7 Segments

Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE: ITW) has seven divisions, each domiciled in a different state, that sell fasteners, electrical equipment, welding materials, specialty components, and more to a wide range of industrial clients. Each division operates independently, serving its own customer base and niche product lines, using an 80/20 model. Illinois Tool Works segments focus 80% of their efforts on the top-spending 20% of their customer base, cultivating relationships with high-value clients that can better weather the industry’s cyclical nature.

The company reported Q4 2025 resultsbefore the market opened on Feb. 3, beating top and bottom-line estimates. CEO Chris O’Herlihy highlighted expansion across all seven divisions, boosting Q4’s operating margin to a record 26.5%. Full-year 2026 EPS guidance is $11-$11.40 (7% YOY growth), and the company expects to complete another $1.5 billion in share repurchases and raise its dividend payout for a 56th consecutive year. The stock is already up more than 10% since the report, and the optimistic guidance (and technical signals) point to more gains ahead.

Honeywell: Unlocking New Value By Splitting Up

Like L3Harris Technologies Inc. (NYSE: LHX) last year, when it unloaded one of its divisions to the Department of Defense, Honeywell International Inc. (NASDAQ: HON) is realizing that spinoff is only a bad word in the TV industry. Honeywell plans to spin off its Aerospace division, allowing the parent company to focus on industrial automation while the new entity becomes a pure play in avionics. Management expects the split to be completed by Q3 2026. 

Honeywell reported its Q4 2025 results on Jan. 29, surpassing expectations on both EPS and revenue. Q4 orders were up 23%, and the company’s backlog grew to $37 billion, which would cover nearly a full year of revenue under current projections. Management also raised full-year 2026 adjusted EPS guidance to $10.35 to $10.65, with sales estimates of $38.8 billion to $39.8 billion. Both figures represent organic growth of at least 6%, and 12 analysts have already raised their stock price targets since the release.

Deere and Company: Automation Drives Margin Improvements

Deere and Company (NYSE: DE) has become an AI success story thanks to its automated farming equipment and revitalized business model. The company is now basically a tech firm that sells John Deere tractors, commanding high-margin revenue from its automated software systems and precision agricultural products.

Deere reported full-year 2025 operating margins of 12.6% during its Q4 2025 earnings release back in November, along with $12.39 billion in revenue (up 14% YOY). However, the company also warned of tariff headwinds of up to $1.2 billion in 2026, and investors will be watching closely when Deere reports Q1 2026 results on Feb. 19.

Investors don’t seem concerned about tariffs; the stock soared to a new all-time high on a 13-day winning streak to begin February. Technical trends also confirm the breakout, allowing DE shares to reach a new all-time high for the first time since last June. Deere executives offered modest revenue guidance with a wide range at $4 billion to $4.75 billion, and the stock remains undervalued at 32 times forward earnings despite reaching new all-time highs.

Read this article online ›

Featured Stories

• Why Analysts Still See Big Upside in Salesforce After the SaaS Scare
• Gold Is About to Do Something It Hasn’t in 90 Years (From US Gold Bureau)
• Meta’s Platfroms’ New Bull: Why Billionaire Bill Ackman Is Buying
• How the Rich Retire (From The Oxford Club)
• From Aerospace to AI: 3 Names Supercharging Dividends
• Amid the “SaaS Apocalypse”, These 3 Names Are Boosting Buybacks
• 5 Software Stocks That Look Too Cheap to Ignore

Did you find this article helpful?

Thank you for subscribing to Earnings360, a morning newsletter that summarizes quarterly earnings for public companies that trade on U.S. markets.

If you have questions or concerns about your account, please email our U.S. based support team at contact@marketbeat.com.

If you no longer wish to receive email from Earnings360, you can unsubscribe.

Copyright 2006-2026 MarketBeat Media, LLC. All rights protected.
345 N Reid Pl., Sixth Floor, Sioux Falls, SD 57103-7078. United States of America..

Check This Out: Trump’s Final Shocking Act Begins February 24 (From Banyan Hill Publishing)