Analyst resets Nvidia stock price target ahead of earnings

Nvidia stock (NVDA) investors saw a wild ride ahead of its Q2 earnings release in August. Its stock price fell below $100 on August 5th, rebounded and rose for six consecutive days between 12 and 19. Nvidia traded at around $128 on August 21st.

Nvidia’s collapse earlier this month was partly due to global market turmoil following the yen exchange and a potential chip delivery delay caused by a design flaw in the Blackwell architecture.

The chip giant remains the AI ​​industry leader with an 80% market share in AI processors. But rivals like AMD are picking up the pace.

On August 19, AMD announced a $5 billion acquisition of ZT Systems to boost its GPU sales. Nvidia shares lost 2% in the next trading day. GPUs are specialized hardware for performing the matrix calculations required for AI processing.

Related: Analysts Reset AMD Stock Outlook After AI Acquisition

Nvidia will report its fiscal second quarter earnings on August 28. Whatever the results, they will mark a key milestone for AI and the semiconductor industry. Earnings reports from its chipmakers can be a good reference for predicting earnings and future stock price movements.

Player no. 2 in the market, AMD, posted strong second-quarter earnings on July 30, beating analysts’ expectations for both revenue and profit. Revenue rose 9% to $5.84 billion, while earnings rose 19% to 69 cents a share. He also sees robust demand for AI in the future.

But Intel collapsed on missed earnings. On Aug. 1, the company reported a net loss of $1.61 billion, compared with net income of $1.48 billion a year earlier. Revenue and earnings were also lower than analysts’ forecasts.

Intel attributed the loss to a decision to more quickly produce Core Ultra PC chips that can handle AI workloads, according to CEO Pat Gelsinger.

Analysts at HSBC raised Nvidia’s price target to $145 from $135 and maintained a buy rating.

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What to expect after record revenue in Q1

Nvidia reported record quarterly revenue of $26.0 billion for fiscal Q1 2025, up 18% from Q4 and up 262% from a year ago.

The AI ​​giant anticipates revenue of $28 billion for Q2 FY25, with GAAP and non-GAAP gross margins projected at 74.8% and 75.5%, respectively. In comparison, Q2 FY24 reported revenues of $13.51 billion, with GAAP and non-GAAP gross margins of 70.1% and 71.2%.

Related: Analysts reset targets for key vendor Nvidia after earnings

“The next industrial revolution has begun – companies and countries are working with NVIDIA to move traditional trillion-dollar data centers to accelerated computing and build a new type of data center – artificial intelligence factories – to produce a new commodity: artificial intelligence,” said. CEO Jensen Huang, in the first quarter earnings release, “We are ready for our next wave of growth.”

HSBC analyst raises price target on Nvidia shares ahead of earnings

On August 21, HSBC analyst Frank Lee raised Nvidia’s price target to $145 from $135 and maintained a buy rating.

The analyst believes Nvidia continues to be strong, driven by underlying AI GPU demand, with “limited revenue impact from any delays in the product roadmap.”

“The AI ​​hyperscaler investment trend in 2025 remains intact, along with the underlying AI demand,” the analyst said.

HSBC expects Nvidia’s second-quarter sales to be $30 billion, beating the company’s guidance and consensus estimates of $28 billion and $28.6 billion, respectively.

More AI actions:

• Nvidia shares tumble in tech decline amid key chip questions
• Microsoft exec warns of an ongoing problem
• Apple posts top forecasts, iPhone sales fall ahead of AI launch

TheStreet also reported on Aug. 19 that Goldman Sachs analyst Toshiya Hari reiterated a buy rating on Nvidia with a $135 target ahead of earnings, citing strong demand and Nvidia’s “solid” competitive position.

“While the reported delay in Blackwell could lead to near-term volatility in fundamentals, management’s comments, along with supply chain data points in the coming weeks, should lead to greater conviction in Nvidia’s earnings strength in 2025,” the analyst said in a research note.

Related: Veteran fund manager sees world of pain coming for stocks