2 ASX Tech Stocks Benefitting From Global Digital Trends

The world’s digital engine runs on two things: concrete and code. On the ground, premium real estate with massive power budgets is being converted into AI‑ready data centres. In the network, enterprises are ditching clunky, fixed circuits for software‑defined, on‑demand connectivity that links clouds, sites, and data centres in minutes. Two ASX names sit right where these trends are accelerating: Goodman Group (ASX: GMG) and Megaport (ASX: MP1). Different toolkits, same tide—more data, more compute, more connectivity.

Goodman Group: Data centres move to the core

Goodman’s FY25 update confirmed what the market has been sensing for two years: data centres are now the centre of gravity in its global development engine. The company’s model—secure scarce metro sites and power, develop at scale, partner long‑term, and recycle capital—continues to compound operating earnings while expanding fee streams.

1. Where the build is happening
   Work‑in‑progress (WIP) stands at about $12.9 billion across 57 projects in 12 countries, with a forecast yield on cost of 7.5% and an annualised production rate of $6.1 billion. Crucially, data centres now account for 57% of WIP, and roughly 130 MW of fully fitted projects are already underway—evidence that Goodman is moving beyond powered shells into turnkey capacity for hyperscalers.
2. The power moat
   Goodman has assembled an estimated 5.0 GW “power bank” across 13 major global cities. Of that, around 2.7 GW is secured (about 0.7 GW stabilised, 0.3 GW work‑in‑progress, 1.7 GW secured pipeline), with a further ~2.3 GW in advanced procurement. Management is targeting approximately 0.5 GW of data centre development underway by June 2026, a scale that puts it among the most credible global developers outside the hyperscalers themselves.
3. Partner, rotate, repeat
   New data centre partnerships were established in Europe and Hong Kong, an Australian partnership launched, and another European partnership is planned for FY26. One completed data centre was sold into the Japan DC partnership—classic capital rotation that frees balance sheet capacity while keeping management fees and performance incentives inside the ecosystem.
4. Portfolio strength, earnings momentum
   Total portfolio value is about $85.6 billion as at 30 June 2025 (up 9% year on year). FY25 operating earnings rose roughly 9.8%, and the company is guiding to around 9% operating EPS growth in FY26. Occupancy sits at about 96.5%, with like‑for‑like net property income up 4.3%—resilient base metrics that fund the pivot.

Why it benefits from global trends: AI and cloud require power‑dense, low‑latency, urban‑adjacent capacity—and that’s precisely where supply is constrained. Goodman’s control of metro land plus multi‑gigawatt power paths creates a durable competitive edge. As more tenants seek fully fitted, accelerated deployments, the mix shift supports attractive development margins and expanding fee income.

What to watch:

1. Conversion of the 5.0 GW power bank into live projects; cadence of fully fitted deployments versus powered shells.
2. Launches and scaling of new partnerships (Australia active, Europe next) as vehicles for capital recycling and fee growth.
3. Build‑cost control and grid connection timing as pipelines move from paper to energisation.

Megaport: Software‑defined connectivity for a multi‑cloud world

Megaport’s Network‑as‑a‑Service (NaaS) turns legacy networking on its head. Instead of waiting weeks for fixed circuits, enterprises point‑and‑click to spin up private, high‑speed links between clouds, data centres, and on‑prem sites in minutes—and scale bandwidth up or down as AI and data bursts require. FY25 showed the model gaining depth and reach.

1. Headline momentum
   Total revenue reached approximately $227.1 million in FY25, up 16% year on year. Net Revenue Retention sits at about 107% (up one point), a sign that existing customers are expanding spend and use cases. The company reported cash of around $102.1 million—useful firepower for network expansion and sales execution.
2. Bigger logos, bigger footprint
   “Large customers” rose 18% to about 629, while total logos climbed 9% to roughly 2,873. Megaport enabled a net 115 new data centres in FY25 and, in August 2025, surpassed 1,000 Megaport‑enabled data centres globally—a scale milestone that boosts network effects. A 400G backbone now operates across 29 metros, better suited to AI‑era data flows.
3. Going wider, going faster
   Megaport entered Brazil and Italy, launched internet services in nine additional countries, and now operates across 26 countries. For global enterprises and AI workloads that need predictable, low‑latency, multi‑cloud paths, a broader mesh equals higher relevance—and higher wallet share over time.

Why it benefits from global trends: As networks modernise for hybrid cloud and AI, CIOs prefer elastic, usage‑based connectivity over long‑term fixed circuits. NRR >100% and a swelling backbone footprint indicate that this is structural, not cyclical. As more workloads become data‑intensive and distributed, the “dial‑up, dial‑down” connectivity model grows in value.

What to watch:

1. Further uplift in Net Revenue Retention as large customers add regions, bandwidth, and services.
2. Continued site adds and metro 400G rollouts to deepen coverage and performance.
3. Penetration and ARR compounding in new geographies, plus attach of higher‑margin services.

Why these two make sense together

1. Physical plus programmable: Goodman scales the physical substrate—electricity, floorspace, cooling—where compute lives. Megaport scales the programmable fabric that binds that compute together across clouds and geographies. Own both, and a portfolio captures value from the same megatrends through two orthogonal angles.
2. Visibility plus velocity: Goodman’s development book and power bank provide multi‑year revenue visibility; Megaport’s usage‑based model provides velocity, with quick customer expansion when workloads spike (think AI training bursts, data migration, or regional launches).
3. Optionality in the AI decade: As inference moves closer to end‑users and training camps concentrate in power‑rich metros, demand for both premium sites and agile interconnects should rise. These are not “one‑cycle” stories—they compound as digital density increases.

Growth levers to track next

Goodman

1. Power bank conversion rates and time‑to‑energise.
2. Mix of fully fitted deployments and the margin impact.
3. New partnership vehicles (especially in Europe) to recycle capital and scale fee income.

Megaport

• Net Revenue Retention moving higher as large accounts deepen multi‑cloud usage.
• Acceleration of 400G backbones and incremental data centre adds.
• Expansion wins in new countries translating to ARR compounding.

The takeaway

Digital demand manifests in two places: real assets and virtual pipes. Goodman is scaling the former with a multi‑gigawatt power bank and a majority‑data‑centre development book. Megaport is scaling the latter with growing NRR, global reach, and a denser high‑speed backbone. Different business models, shared macro: more data, more compute, more connectivity—and tangible revenue tied to a multi‑year buildout.

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