Evercore ISI analysts are recommending buying Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) stock ahead of the chipmaker’s upcoming earnings report for the July quarter. Despite worries about potential delays in the release of the Blackwell system, the investment bank believes these concerns are exaggerated. Demand for Nvidia’s systems remains strong, with a 20% quarter-on-quarter increase in hyperscale capital expenditure (CapEx) during Q2 2024. Looking ahead, CapEx is expected to grow by an additional 8% in Q3 and 10% in Q4. Even if the Blackwell system faces delays, Evercore analysts are confident that Tier 2 and 3 Cloud Service Providers and enterprises will still purchase current generation Hopper solutions. They view Nvidia as their “Top Tectonic Shift in Computing pick” and project the company could achieve over $10 in earnings per share (EPS) by 2030.
MoffettNathanson analysts note that Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) is positioned to be a significant player in the AI space, but this potential is already reflected in the stock price. Despite concerns about Apple lagging in AI, the market has shown confidence in the company’s strategy, especially after the World Wide Developers Conference (WWDC). They emphasize that Apple’s AI approach leverages the trust of its over one billion users and could potentially drive an iPhone upgrade cycle. However, the impact of this cycle is already factored into the current stock valuation.
Analysts at Edward Jones initiated research coverage of Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD) with a Buy rating and added the semiconductor giant to its Stock Focus List. They believe that rising demand for data center infrastructure will accelerate sales of AMD’s graphics processing units (GPUs) and central processing units (CPUs). The acquisition of Xilinx further expands AMD’s product offerings, with significant cross-selling opportunities estimated to be worth up to $10 billion. The positive outlook for AMD is considered an attractive investment opportunity at current levels.
Shares of Silicon Motion Technology (NASDAQ:SIMO) declined after Bank of America analysts issued a double downgrade on the NAND flash controller supplier. The analysts reduced their rating on SIMO stock from Buy to Underperform, citing expectations of limited growth following the upturn in the first half of 2024. They also lowered revenue and operating profit estimates for the second half of 2024 and 2025 due to low exposure to AI and enterprise SSD. BofA highlighted the weak demand for commodity memory and reduced their price objective for SIMO.
Bernstein analysts downgraded Baidu (NASDAQ:BIDU) from Outperform to Market Perform and reduced their price target following the company’s latest earnings report. They anticipate the stock trading sideways due to increasing disruption and uncertainty about future prospects. The firm expects more disruption in the near-term search results and lowered its growth expectations for the second half of 2024 and 2025. Without a revival in Search, Bernstein analysts believe that Baidu shares will remain under pressure.