NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) stock surged on Wednesday in the wake of the company’s earnings report on Tuesday evening, but it climbed even more on Thursday after the analyst day. It’s really no surprise to anyone that artificial intelligence and deep learning were two key highlights of the chip maker’s analyst day.
Artificial intelligence and deep learning were the headliners
Macquarie Research analyst Srini Pajjuri said in a note to investors that NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) management estimates the total addressable market at $11 billion for “training” and $15 billion for “inference.” The company’s new Volta datacenter product focuses on “inferencing,” the segment of the market that the analyst expects to be the more competitive of the two.
The chip maker also showcased continuing adoption of its Pascal product and growth in eSports. It also announced a new self-driving partnership with Toyota, which builds on its other self-driving agreements with Tesla, Volvo and Audi. However, Pajjuri feels that the Toyota partnership could be huge because of the volume potential, although any ramp in revenue on the deal is still a few years away.
NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) stock price targets boosted
Several analysts boosted their price targets for NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) stock this week following the company’s strong beat and raise earnings results. Bank of America Merrill Lynch analyst Vivek Arya and team raised their price objective for NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) stock from $125 to $138 and reiterated their Buy rating following Tuesday’s print.
They noted that despite the seasonal headwinds in PC gaming, datacenter, auto and console sales helped drive the strong quarter. They added that although cash generation was weak, the overall results were enough to pull investors back in. They feel the Street doesn’t fully appreciate the chip maker’s “competitive moats and uniquely leverage-able tech platform” for markets that are still in their early years, a reference to artificial intelligence, augmented reality and virtual reality, and autonomous cars.
JPMorgan analyst Harlan Sur boosted his price target for NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) stock from $116 to $122. He noted that the chip maker guided for a 1% sequential increase in revenue for the July quarter to bring it to $1.05 billion, excluding licensing. That was higher than the consensus at $1.91 billion.
NVIDIA expected to rule artificial intelligence
Needham analysts Rajvindra Gill and Robert Bertens raised their price target for NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) stock from $120 to $130. They feel the chip maker “sits at the forefront of the AI intelligence revolution with its combination of deep learning SW algorithms and powerful GPUs. Artificial intelligence is a key piece of the self-driving puzzle.
They see the long-term automotive play for NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) being Level 3 and Level 4 autonomous driving deployment, although currently, most of the chip maker’s automotive sales are infotainment modules. The company is partnering with 225 car and truck makers, Tier 1 automotive suppliers, and startups that are developing with Drive PX2.
Jefferies analyst Mark Lipacis sums up the opportunities NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) has in the area of autonomous driving and artificial intelligence by terming it “the Wintel of AI.”
Shares of NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) stock soared to a new 52-week intra-day high on Thursday, climbing as high as $130.43.
