I could be one of those investors that tell people it’s never too late to buy a stock. Yet honestly, that’s not the case. Sometimes companies surge in share price, fall to pieces, and look like they’ll crash and burn. Then, it’s certainly not a great idea to buy. A TSX stock can be too late to buy when the market has already priced in all the good news. Then the share price climbs far faster than the companyâs actual earnings or cash flow can support.
When a stockâs valuation becomes stretched, momentum takes over. That’s when investors start paying for a perfect future that may never materialize. Youâll often see this after a major earnings beat, a big contract win, or a sudden wave of analyst upgrades that sends everyone rushing in at once. If fundamentals donât keep pace, the stock becomes vulnerable to sharp pullbacks, and late buyers end up holding the risk rather than the upside. So with this in mind, where does Celestica (TSX:CLS) fall?
What happened
Celestica stock has been one of the TSXâs most explosive success stories, and that naturally raises the question: Is it too late to buy? The stock has surged as the company transformed itself from a low-margin contract manufacturer into a high-value engineering and advanced-electronics partner for artificial intelligence (AI) data centres, aerospace, defence and complex hardware customers. In fact, year-to-date shares have climbed a whopping 250%!
That pivot changed everything. Revenue growth accelerated, margins expanded, and Celestica stock suddenly found itself at the centre of multiple global supply-chain trends. Investors didnât miss the shift, so the share price climbed sharply. The run has been huge, but the rise isnât built on hype; itâs tied to measurable earnings strength, rising guidance, and a much stronger forward order book. That matters because high-growth stocks can still have plenty of room to run when earnings keep pulling the valuation forward. Celestica stock now trades at a higher multiple than in the past, but itâs not in bubble territory relative to its growth rate.
What now
The bigger question is whether Celestica stock’s strongest catalysts are behind it. So far, the answer is likely ânot yet.â The data-centre build-out isnât slowing. AI hardware is still in the early innings. Aerospace and defence remain in multiyear expansion cycles. Furthermore, unlike many hardware partners, Celestica stock has proven it can move up the value chain and secure long-term, sticky customers.
That creates a recurring flywheel rather than one-off revenue bursts. If the company keeps hitting guidance, and recent quarters suggest it can, the stock still has room for fundamental growth to drive the next leg higher. The risk is that expectations are now elevated, meaning any slowdown, margin squeeze, or customer pullback could trigger sharp volatility. For long-term investors, that makes Celestica stock less of a bargain and more of a conviction play. Youâre betting the company will continue to scale into the AI manufacturing boom, keep expanding margins, and maintain strong demand from marquee clients.
Foolish takeaway
So is it too late? Not necessarily, but the easy money has already been made. Celestica stock isnât the deep-value play it once was, but it isnât priced like a mature, capped-out business either. If you believe AI hardware demand will keep accelerating and Celestica will remain a critical supplier, the stock can still compound over time.
If, however, youâre hoping for the same rapid multiple expansion that powered the last surge, that window has likely narrowed. Investors entering now should do so with a longer time horizon, an acceptance of short-term volatility, and confidence that this is no longer a turnaround story. Instead, itâs a growth company that must keep delivering to justify its premium.
The post Is it Too Late to Buy Celestica Stock? appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.
Should you invest $1,000 in Celestica Inc. right now?
Before you buy stock in Celestica Inc., consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor Canada analyst team identified what they believe are the 15 best stocks for investors to buy now⦠and Celestica Inc. wasnât one of them. The 15 stocks that made the cut could potentially produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider MercadoLibre, which we first recommended on January 8, 2014 … if you invested $1,000 in the âeBay of Latin Americaâ at the time of our recommendation, youâd have $21,105.89!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor Canada’s total average return is 95%* – a market-crushing outperformance compared to 72%* for the S&P/TSX Composite Index. Don’t miss out on our top 15 list, available when you join Stock Advisor Canada.
#start_btn6 {
background: #0e6d04 none repeat scroll 0 0;
color: #fff;
font-size: 1.2em;
font-family: ‘Montserrat’, sans-serif;
font-weight: 600;
height: auto;
line-height: 1.2em;
margin: 30px 0;
max-width: 350px;
text-align: center;
width: auto;
box-shadow: 0 1px 0 rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5),
0 1px 0 #fff inset,
0 0 2px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2);
border-radius: 5px;
}
#start_btn6 a {
color: #fff;
display: block;
padding: 20px;
padding-right:1em;
padding-left:1em;
}
#start_btn6 a:hover {
background: #FFE300 none repeat scroll 0 0;
color: #000;
}
@media (max-width: 480px) {
div#start_btn6 {
font-size:1.1em;
max-width: 320px;}
}
margin_bottom_5 { margin-bottom:5px;
}
margin_top_10 { margin-top:10px;
}
* Returns as of November 17th, 2025
More reading
- If You’d Invested $1,000 in Celestica Stock 5 Years Ago, This Is How Much You’d Have Now
- The Best Stocks to Invest $1,000 in Right Now
- Why Now is the Time to Invest in Canadian AI Stocks Like Celestica
- Where Will Celestica Stock Be in 5 Years?
- 3 Stocks Down Sharply From Recent Highs That Canadian Investors Should Look at Today
Fool contributor Amy Legate-Wolfe has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Celestica. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
www.fool.ca (Article Sourced Website)
#Late #Buy #Celestica #Stock