GDS Holdings beats Q1 estimates as AI infrastructure demand drives data center revenue, bookings, and adjusted EBITDA growth.
Stock Earnings Results
May 20, 2026
Table of Contents
May 20, 2026
GDS Holdings Limited (NASDAQ: GDS) reported first-quarter 2026 results above expectations, supported by higher data center revenue, stronger adjusted EBITDA, record new bookings, and continued AI infrastructure demand.
GDS is a developer and operator of high-performance data centers in China, serving cloud, internet, AI, and enterprise customers.
The company reported EPS of $1.53, above estimates of $1.06, representing a 44.3% earnings surprise. Revenue came in at $488.13 million, above estimates of $440.69 million, with revenue growth of 30.1%.
GDS reported first-quarter net revenue of RMB3.37 billion, or $488.1 million, up 23.6% year-over-year.
Excluding one-time items, net revenue was RMB2.94 billion, up 7.9% year-over-year, mainly driven by the continued ramp-up of the company’s data centers.
Adjusted EBITDA increased 47.2% year-over-year to RMB1.95 billion, or $282.5 million.
Excluding one-time items, adjusted EBITDA was RMB1.43 billion, up 8.0% year-over-year. Adjusted EBITDA margin was 57.9%, or 48.7% excluding one-time items.
GDS said it recorded net new bookings of around 200 MW during the quarter, the highest single-quarter level in company history.
Management said intensifying AI infrastructure demand is helping position GDS for the next phase of growth.
Total area committed and pre-committed increased 11.7% year-over-year to 725,485 square meters.
Area utilized increased 12.7% to 520,929 square meters, while area in service rose 10.4% to 674,269 square meters. Utilization improved to 77.3%, compared with 75.7% a year earlier.
Net income increased 247.1% year-over-year to RMB2.65 billion, or $384.5 million.
The increase was helped by income from equity method investees, mainly tied to a dilution gain on GDS’s investment in DayOne Data Centers and a partial sale of DayOne ordinary shares.
GDS ended the quarter with RMB14.82 billion, or $2.15 billion, in cash and cash equivalents.
The company also raised additional financing during the quarter, supporting expansion as data center demand continues to grow.
Investors are likely to watch whether GDS can convert AI-driven bookings into sustained revenue growth.
The key areas are:
GDS delivered a strong quarter, with earnings, revenue, EBITDA, bookings, and utilization all improving.
The biggest signal was record new bookings of around 200 MW, showing that AI infrastructure demand is becoming a larger growth driver for data center operators. The next test is whether GDS can turn those bookings into revenue while managing debt and expansion costs.
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