NVIDIA Shares Surge 3.9% After Positive Analyst Upgrades

NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA) experienced a significant increase in its share price on Friday, rising by 3.9% during mid-day trading. This surge followed an upgrade from Truist Financial, which raised its price target for NVIDIA from $255.00 to $275.00 and maintained a buy rating on the stock. Following this announcement, NVIDIA shares reached a high of $181.45 before settling at $180.99.

Trading volume for NVIDIA reached 322,571,710 shares, a substantial increase of 44% compared to its average session volume of 223,607,500 shares. The stock had previously closed at $174.14, highlighting the impact of the analysts’ positive assessments.

Several other equity research firms have also recently revised their ratings for NVIDIA. On November 20, 2023, Citigroup boosted its target price from $220.00 to $270.00 and issued a buy rating. Similarly, Susquehanna raised its target from $230.00 to $250.00 with a positive rating. Argus reaffirmed its buy rating with a target price of $220.00, while Wall Street Zen upgraded its rating from hold to buy. Additionally, Wedbush increased its price target from $210.00 to $230.00.

The consensus among analysts is notably bullish, with five research analysts giving NVIDIA a Strong Buy rating, forty-five assigning a Buy rating, two issuing a Hold rating, and one providing a Sell rating. Data from MarketBeat.com indicates that the average price target for NVIDIA is currently $262.14.

Institutional Investments on the Rise

In conjunction with the share price increase, institutional trading activity has also been notable. Several institutional investors have recently adjusted their positions in NVIDIA. AIA Group Ltd increased its stake by 55.1% during the third quarter, now holding 665,253 shares valued at $124.1 million. Alternative Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings by 1.7%, while Financial Symmetry Inc made a significant increase of 66.4% in its position.

Keel Point LLC also lifted its stake by 17.1%, owning 185,051 shares worth $34.5 million. Furthermore, Lindenwold Advisors Inc increased its holdings by 33.0%, now owning 47,775 shares valued at $8.9 million. As a result, institutional investors now control 65.27% of NVIDIA’s stock.

Strong Financial Performance and Dividend Announcement

NVIDIA’s financial performance continues to impress. The company recently reported its earnings results on November 19, 2023, announcing earnings per share (EPS) of $1.30 for the quarter, exceeding analysts’ expectations of $1.23 by $0.07. The company achieved a revenue of $57.01 billion, surpassing forecasts of $54.66 billion. This marks a substantial year-over-year growth of 62.5%, compared to $0.81 EPS during the same quarter last year.

In addition to its robust earnings, NVIDIA declared a quarterly dividend expected to be paid on December 26, 2023. Shareholders of record as of December 4, 2023 will receive a dividend of $0.01 per share, translating to an annualized dividend of $0.04 and a yield of 0.0%.

Founded in 1993 and headquartered in Santa Clara, California, NVIDIA has evolved from a graphics-focused chipmaker into a leading provider of accelerated computing hardware and software across multiple industries. Co-founded by Jensen Huang, who serves as the president and CEO, NVIDIA designs and develops graphics processing units (GPUs) and system-on-chip (SoC) technologies that cater to gaming, professional visualization, and AI applications.

As NVIDIA continues to capture market interest through strong financial performance and strategic upgrades from analysts, the company’s future appears promising, aligning with its commitment to innovation and growth in the tech industry.