Nearly three months after Nvidia shocked Wall Street with blowout earnings and future forecast thanks to accelerating AI demand , analysts are still going crazy for the chipmaker. The maker of graphics processing units used in artifical intelligence applications has soared 203% this year, and is slated to report results on Aug. 23 after the market close. Wall Street’s retaining its optimism, expecting yet another strong quarter. Barclays’ Blayne Curtis called Nvidia the “best of the AI names” in a Wednesday note to clients, and one of the bank’s favorite ways to invest in the theme. NVDA 3M mountain Nvidia shares over the last three months Curtis justified the run-up in shares this year, noting that more companies are allocating cloud capital expenditure budgets toward AI and Nvidia shows no signs of a “clear competitor” in the field. “There is clearly some hesitation to buy a name up ~200% this year but we believe the stock will look cheap exiting earnings as the Street moves to our $15+ EPS estimate next year on its way to $20+, as supply fills in,” the Barclays analyst said. “NVDA should also raise the tide for such as AMD and MRVL with AI the key source of upside next year.” Piper Sandler’s Harsh Kumar also expects Nvidia to top July quarter estimates and issue strong October quarter guidance, anticipating ongoing growth within the company’s datacenter business. Given that, Kumar lifted his price target to $500 a share, reflecting about 14% upside from Tuesday’s close, adding that he expects Piper’s numbers to have an “upward bias” due to tailwinds from China and growing traction among large cloud companies. Raymond James analyst Srini Pajjuri noted that tight supply issues could limit the near-term upside for Nvidia, but the generative AI story remains intact. He also called the steep valuation justified given the Jensen Huang -led company’s dominance in AI and machine learning. Pajjuri lifted Raymond James’ price target to $500 a share and boosted revenue and non-GAAP EPS estimates. For the October quarter, he is also anticipating stronger results due to higher gross margins and better-than-expected data center revenues. To be sure, other analysts remain cautious heading into the print. While Deutsche Bank’s Ross Seymore anticipates another “stunning” report and more upside from AI, he retained his hold rating on Nvidia shares. According to the analyst, cyclicality risks could make the “magnitude and slope” of the company’s future growth difficult to predict. “Going forward, we forecast continued strength in the near-term as the [company] races to converge supply with demand, albeit acknowledging the buy-side has set a relatively high bar,” he wrote. — CNBC’s Michael Bloom contributed reporting
