Nvidia hits all-time high as analyst predicts AI-driven ‘Golden Wave’

Nvidia surged to a record high on Wednesday, becoming the world’s most valuable company once again, as investor optimism over the next phase of artificial intelligence (AI) adoption drove a fresh rally in the US tech sector. The chipmaker’s stock jumped over 4 per cent to close at $154.10, pushing its market capitalisation to $3.76 trillion, surpassing Microsoft’s $3.65 trillion valuation.

This marks another milestone for the California-based semiconductor giant, which is at the centre of the global AI boom.

Analyst backs ‘Golden Wave’ of Gen AI

The latest surge in Nvidia’s stock followed a bullish research note by Loop Capital, which raised its price target on the company from $175 to $250, citing stronger-than-expected demand for generative AI. “Our work suggests we are entering the next ‘Golden Wave’ of Gen AI adoption and Nvidia is at the front-end of another material leg of stronger-than-anticipated demand,” said Ananda Baruah, analyst at Loop Capital, as quoted by Reuters.

Nvidia is widely seen as the global leader in AI chips used to train and run large language models (LLMs), and has become a bellwether for investor sentiment in the rapidly evolving AI ecosystem.

Market rotation back to AI trade

Nvidia’s rally comes as the broader US stock market returns to the AI-driven trade that dominated headlines last year. The S&P 500 technology index climbed 0.9 per cent to a new all-time high on Wednesday and is now up nearly 6 per cent in 2025. The company has seen a 60 per cent rebound from its April lows, when US markets were rattled by President Donald Trump’s global tariff announcements. Since then, investor confidence has returned on expectations that the White House will negotiate trade deals to soften the blow of new tariffs.

Despite its eye-popping valuation, Nvidia is currently trading at around 30 times forward earnings, according to LSEG data. That’s actually below its five-year average of 40—reflecting the fact that analysts have consistently raised their earnings forecasts even faster than the stock has appreciated.

Tech titans continue value race

Nvidia’s re-ascent to the top of the market cap leaderboard reflects an ongoing tug-of-war among the “Big Three” tech giants, Nvidia, Microsoft, and Apple. The three have rotated positions as the world’s most valuable publicly listed companies over the past year.

Microsoft had briefly reclaimed the lead in early June, following strong enterprise cloud performance. Meanwhile, Apple’s stock edged up 0.4 per cent on Wednesday, putting its valuation at approximately $3.0 trillion. With investors betting big on next-generation AI models, chipmakers like Nvidia remain central to the market narrative, bridging innovation in hardware, cloud computing, and software platforms.

What's next?

As global adoption of AI tools accelerates, from consumer applications to enterprise automation, Nvidia appears poised to remain the foundational infrastructure provider. Analysts now see the company not just as a chipmaker, but as a strategic enabler of the AI economy, drawing comparisons to what Microsoft was for software in the 1990s.

With generative AI poised to reshape global productivity and geopolitics, Nvidia’s performance may continue to serve as a barometer for where the AI-driven economy is headed next.

(With inputs from the agencies)