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GDS Holdings
(NASDAQ:GDS)
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Rating:61Neutral
Price Target:
$33.00
▼(-26.17% Downside)
Action:Reiterated
Date:05/22/26
The score is driven by improving operating profitability and a constructive earnings-call outlook (strong bookings, backlog, and liquidity), tempered by negative free cash flow and leverage risk. Technicals are the main near-term headwind due to a pronounced downtrend despite oversold signals, while valuation is a notable support given the very low P/E.
Positive Factors
Large Bookings and Backlog
A 1.8 GW bookings base with >1.0 GW of bookings plus reservations provides durable revenue visibility and a multi-quarter rollout pipeline. Pre-committed demand reduces lease-up risk, supports sustained capacity utilization and underpins near-to-medium term revenue and cash conversion trajectories.
Negative Factors
Persistently Negative Free Cash Flow
Although operating cash flow is positive, recurring negative free cash flow shows that profits are not turning into excess cash after capex. This structural cash burn requires continued external funding or asset sales to finance growth, raising sustainability concerns during prolonged build phases.
Read all positive and negative factors
Positive Factors
Negative Factors
Large Bookings and Backlog
A 1.8 GW bookings base with >1.0 GW of bookings plus reservations provides durable revenue visibility and a multi-quarter rollout pipeline. Pre-committed demand reduces lease-up risk, supports sustained capacity utilization and underpins near-to-medium term revenue and cash conversion trajectories.
Read all positive factors
GDS Holdings (GDS) vs. SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY)
Market Cap
$6.50B
Dividend YieldN/A
Average Volume (3M)2.37M
Price to Earnings (P/E)16.1
Beta (1Y)1.28
Revenue Growth9.67%
EPS GrowthN/A
CountryUS
Employees2,434
SectorTechnology
Sector Strength88
IndustryInformation Technology Services
Share Statistics
EPS (TTM)14.18
Shares Outstanding200,928,820
10 Day Avg. Volume2,052,575
30 Day Avg. Volume2,372,603
Financial Highlights & Ratios
PEG Ratio-0.70
Price to Book (P/B)1.73
Price to Sales (P/S)4.06
P/FCF Ratio-34.93
Enterprise Value/Market Cap<0.01
Enterprise Value/Revenue<0.01
Enterprise Value/Gross Profit<0.01
Enterprise Value/Ebitda<0.01
Forecast
1Y Price Target
$49.00Price Target Upside9.62% Upside
Rating ConsensusStrong Buy
Number of Analyst Covering3
EPS Forecast (FY)5.55
Revenue Forecast (FY)$12.67B
GDS Holdings Business Overview & Revenue Model
Company Description
GDS Holdings Limited, operating with its subsidiaries, specializes in the development and management of data center facilities across the People's Republic of China. The company offers a wide range of services, including colocation—providing cruci...
How the Company Makes Money
GDS primarily makes money by selling data center services under customer contracts, with revenue largely driven by recurring fees for colocation capacity and related infrastructure services. Key revenue streams include: (1) Colocation services—cus...
GDS Holdings Earnings Call Summary
Earnings Call Date:May 20, 2026
(Q1-2026)
| % Change Since: |
Next Earnings Date:Aug 26, 2026
Earnings Call Sentiment Positive
The call conveyed strong positive operational momentum: large bookings (1.8 GW total; >340 MW YTD), a near‑term >1 GW of bookings + reservations, a sizable secured landbank (~4 GW), stable portfolio economics (~11% gross profit yield), healthy cash (>RMB19B) and a clear multi‑year investment plan (RMB30–50B). Near‑term execution and timing risks were noted (Q2 dip in move‑ins, pockets of aggressive regional pricing, expected increase in net debt/EBITDA to 5–6x as investments accelerate, and dependence on domestic chips for 2026 outlook). Overall, positives — scale, backlog, cash position and stable yields — materially outweigh the manageable near‑term risks.Positive Updates
Strong Bookings and Pipeline
Total bookings up to end of 1Q26 were 1.8 GW; year-to-date new bookings exceed 340 MW toward a 2026 sales target of at least 500 MW; total new bookings plus reservations year-to-date exceed 1.0 GW, providing near certainty of follow-on orders within 1–2 years.
Negative Updates
Regional Pricing Pressure and Competitive Bidding
Management acknowledged pockets of aggressive bidding (e.g., from telcos) in certain regions that can compress pricing, though they described such deals as one‑off and the overall pricing environment as broadly stable.
Read all updates
Q1-2026 Updates
Positive
Negative
Strong Bookings and Pipeline
Total bookings up to end of 1Q26 were 1.8 GW; year-to-date new bookings exceed 340 MW toward a 2026 sales target of at least 500 MW; total new bookings plus reservations year-to-date exceed 1.0 GW, providing near certainty of follow-on orders within 1–2 years.
Read all positive updates
Company Guidance
Management kept full‑year guidance unchanged and laid out specific operational and financial targets: bookings were 1.8 GW at end‑1Q26 with YTD new bookings >340 MW (YTD new bookings plus reservations >1 GW) and a 2026 sales target of at least 500 MW; a 3‑year plan targets adding 500–800 MW of new bookings per year and committing RMB 30–50 billion of new investment (unit development cost ~RMB20,000/kW or USD3M/MW, with MEP ≈70% of cost and ~15% unit cost reduction vs three years ago); 1Q organic CapEx was RMB770m, cash & time deposits exceed RMB19bn (USD2.7bn), and last‑quarter annualized net debt/adjusted EBITDA fell from 6.8x to 4.7x (expected to rise to ~5–6x as investment ramps); backlog and land metrics include nearly 4 GW secured landbank, >100,000 sqm (~400 MW) of new construction initiated (mostly pre‑committed), and backlog >200,000 sqm (~600 MW) becoming biddable in 6–8 quarters; portfolio economics target an adjusted gross profit yield of ~10–11% (in‑service portfolio ~11%) at ~75% utilization and an expected incremental ROE of ~20% over a six‑year cycle.GDS Holdings Financial Statement Overview
Summary
Income Statement
72
Positive
Balance Sheet
55
Neutral
Cash Flow
38
Negative
| Breakdown | TTM | Dec 2025 | Dec 2024 | Dec 2023 | Dec 2022 | Dec 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Income Statement | ||||||
| Total Revenue | 12.08B | 11.43B | 10.32B | 9.96B | 9.33B | 7.82B |
| Gross Profit | 3.07B | 2.59B | 2.22B | 1.92B | 1.94B | 1.78B |
| EBITDA | 5.62B | 6.07B | 4.51B | 1.36B | 4.19B | 3.23B |
| Net Income | 2.84B | 949.64M | 3.43B | -4.29B | -1.27B | -1.19B |
Balance Sheet | ||||||
| Total Assets | 83.82B | 80.05B | 73.65B | 74.45B | 74.81B | 71.63B |
| Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments | 14.77B | 14.97B | 7.87B | 7.71B | 8.61B | 9.97B |
| Total Debt | 47.01B | 47.55B | 44.46B | 47.99B | 44.68B | 37.79B |
| Total Liabilities | 51.50B | 52.29B | 49.98B | 54.32B | 50.63B | 47.10B |
| Stockholders Equity | 31.42B | 26.86B | 23.54B | 19.96B | 24.07B | 24.47B |
Cash Flow | ||||||
| Free Cash Flow | -1.42B | -1.33B | -1.32B | -4.19B | -4.95B | -8.50B |
| Operating Cash Flow | 3.03B | 3.37B | 1.94B | 2.07B | 2.86B | 1.20B |
| Investing Cash Flow | -3.50B | -3.04B | -8.76B | -6.33B | -11.27B | -13.69B |
| Financing Cash Flow | 7.71B | 6.11B | 17.06B | 3.14B | 4.86B | 8.12B |
GDS Holdings Technical Analysis
Neutral
44.70
Price Trends
35.43
Negative
38.83
Negative
38.26
Negative
Market Momentum
-0.55
Negative
49.55
Neutral
78.10
Neutral
Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For GDS, the sentiment is Neutral. The current price of 44.7 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 31.47, above the 50-day MA of 35.43, and above the 200-day MA of 38.26, indicating a neutral trend. The MACD of -0.55 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 49.55 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 78.10 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Neutral sentiment for GDS.
GDS Holdings Risk Analysis
GDS Holdings disclosed 119 risk factors in its most recent earnings report. GDS Holdings reported the most risks in the "Finance & Corporate" category.
Finance & Corporate - Financial and accounting risks. Risks related to the execution of corporate activity and strategy
Latest Risks Added 2 New Risks
1.
If GDSH's beneficial ownership in GDSI falls below 50% or cease to have the ability to appoint the majority of the board of directors of GDSI or otherwise ceases to have the control over the management and policies of GDSI, a change of control would be triggered under certain of GDSI's real property leases, customer agreements and/or loan agreements, and the business development, financial condition and future prospects of GDSH and/or GDSI may be materially and adversely affected. Q4, 2023
2.
Our customer agreement commitments are subject to reduction, potential cancellation and non-renewal upon expiry; if renewed, the renewal may be at lower pricing terms or for a lower commitment of utilization. Q4, 2023
GDS Holdings Peers Comparison
UnderperformOutperform
Sector (61)
Name | Overall Rating | Market Cap | P/E Ratio | ROE | Dividend Yield | Revenue Growth | EPS Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
61 Neutral | $37.18B | 12.37 | -10.20% | 1.83% | 8.50% | -7.62% | |
61 Neutral | $6.50B | 16.15 | 10.18% | ― | 9.67% | ― | |
54 Neutral | $2.58B | 14.05 | 16.40% | ― | 0.23% | -20.13% | |
52 Neutral | $2.24B | -6.37 | -40.29% | ― | 22.86% | -1745.62% | |
47 Neutral | $238.85M | ― | -19.59% | ― | -5.40% | -172.56% | |
46 Neutral | $1.51B | 95.52 | 0.58% | ― | -1.76% | -96.67% |
* Technology Sector Average
GDS
GDS Holdings
32.75
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DXC
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KD
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12.02
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-69.31%
GDS Holdings Corporate Events
GDS Holdings Files 2025 Form 20-F Annual Report With U.S. SEC
Apr 30, 2026
GDS Holdings Limited, a major Chinese high-performance data center operator listed on Nasdaq and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, continues to expand a network of carrier- and cloud-neutral facilities serving hyperscale cloud, internet, financial, te...
Glossary
BuyA stock rated as a "Buy" is expected to perform better than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock is likely to deliver higher returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
HoldA stock rated as a "Hold" is expected to perform in line with the overall market or a specific benchmark. This rating indicates that the stock is neither particularly compelling nor unfavorable for investment. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
SellA stock rated as a "Sell" is expected to perform worse than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock may deliver lower returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
Disclaimer
This AI Analyst Stock Report is automatically generated by our AI systems using advanced algorithms and publicly available financial, technical, and market data. While the information provided aims to be accurate and insightful, it is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Any content created by an AI (Artificial Intelligence) system may contain inaccuracies and/or contain errors. Investing in stocks carries inherent risks, and past performance is not indicative of future results. This report does not account for your personal financial circumstances, objectives, or risk tolerance. Always conduct your own research or consult with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions. The analysis and recommendations provided are based on historical and current data and may not fully reflect future market conditions or unexpected developments. Neither the creators of this report nor its affiliated entities guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information presented. Use this report at your own discretion and risk.