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Nvidia’s hot streak is continuing as the chipmaker’s stock barrels toward a record high ahead of first quarter earnings next week. The chipmaker’s shares were up 0.8% in Thursday morning trading, to $953.83. Nvidia’s previous record high close was $950.02, which it hit on March 25.
Ahead of Nvidia’s first quarter earnings report next Wednesday, Wall Street is setting its expectations for the company’s first quarter revenue at $24.5 billion, according to a FactSet poll of analysts’ estimates. However, KeyBanc equity research analyst John Vinh said Nvidia is likely to report first quarter revenue of $26 billion, and set its second quarter guidance to around $28.5 billion.
“Despite anticipation of next-generation Blackwell GPUs [graphics-processing units] in the second half, we see limited signs of a demand pause and expect Nvidia to report first-quarter results and second-quarter guidance meaningfully above expectations,” Vinh wrote in a research note on Tuesday.
A record-high share price would also be a boost for Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang, who earned $34.2 million in total compensation for fiscal year 2024 — a 60% jump from his total compensation of $21.4 million in fiscal year 2023, according to a proxy statement released Tuesday. Stock awards played a large part in Huang’s compensation boost, as his base salary has hovered just below $1 million for the past three years. Huang earned $26.7 million in stock awards for fiscal year 2024 — up from $19.7 million in fiscal year 2023.
Nvidia’s stock is up about 99% so far this year, after the company’s shares rallied since it reported fourth quarter earnings in February. The company’s shares took a hit right before earnings, but made a comeback after it reported revenue of $22 billion — up nearly 270% from the previous year. The stock is up a whopping 226% over the last 12 months.