Defensive Growth and Synergy-Driven Upside: Initiating Buy on TIC Solutions Post-NV5 Integration

Acuren Corporation (TIC) has received a new Buy rating, initiated by J.P. Morgan analyst, Tomohiko Sano.

Tomohiko Sano has given his Buy rating due to a combination of factors tied to TIC Solutions’ resilient business model and improving financial profile. He highlights that the company delivers mission‑critical, regulation-driven inspection and engineering services whose demand tends to hold up across economic cycles, since they represent a small portion of project costs but are essential for safety and compliance. The successful integration of NV5 is a central pillar of his thesis, as it is already producing higher-than-initially-planned cost savings and is expected to unlock additional cross-selling opportunities, supporting further margin expansion. Sano also emphasizes TIC’s specialized technical expertise and scale, which make its services difficult for customers to fully substitute in-house and help secure enduring customer relationships and a stable revenue base.

At the same time, Sano acknowledges the elevated leverage following the NV5 acquisition but believes that disciplined execution and growing cash generation can steadily improve the balance sheet. He values the shares using a 10.3x EV/EBITDA multiple on his 2026 estimates, which, after accounting for net debt, implies a price target of $16 per share, or about 50% upside from current levels. This upside is supported by exposure to long-term structural growth themes such as infrastructure investment, energy transition, and data centers, which he expects to drive sustained demand for TIC’s services. Overall, Sano concludes that the combination of defensive revenues, synergy-driven margin improvement, and room for valuation re-rating justifies an Overweight/Buy recommendation on TIC.

According to TipRanks, Sano is a 3-star analyst with an average return of 3.8% and a 52.17% success rate. Sano covers the Industrials sector, focusing on stocks such as CSW Industrials, Mirion Technologies, and Gates Industrial.