KEY POINTS
- Nvidia shares climbed for seven consecutive trading days ending Thursday, marking its most extended advance since late 2023.
- During this period, the stock accumulated an 11.4% increase, though NVDA remains approximately 1% lower year-to-date in 2026.
- This seven-session advance mirrored the S&P 500’s concurrent rally, creating questions about whether Nvidia showed genuine independent strength.
- Shares continue trading roughly 14% beneath their 52-week peak — a gap one Jefferies analyst views as attractive upside potential.
- The semiconductor-focused VanEck ETF (SMH) has surged 19% this year despite limited contribution from Nvidia itself.
Nvidia shares experienced a subdued yet consistent week, recording seven straight sessions of positive returns through Thursday’s market close — representing the chip giant’s longest consecutive advance in more than two years. However, Friday morning signaled the end of this momentum.
Premarket trading data indicated NVDA declining 0.6% to $182.88 as market participants reduced technology exposure before an anticipated consumer price index release. S&P 500 futures similarly showed modest weakness.
Throughout the seven-day advance, Nvidia’s stock appreciated 11.4%. While this appears robust initially, broader market context provides important perspective.
The S&P 500 index similarly registered gains across seven consecutive sessions during this identical timeframe. Therefore, the Nvidia advance didn’t represent exceptional outperformance relative to the broader market.
Intel similarly posted seven straight positive sessions during this window, accumulating approximately 50% gains. Against this backdrop, Nvidia’s 11.4% advance appears relatively conservative.
Despite this winning sequence, NVDA continues showing approximately 1% losses for 2026 to date. The shares have remained confined within a $165-$195 trading range for several months, and even this recent advance failed to break that established pattern.
Distance From Peak Levels
Jefferies trading desk analyst Jeffrey Favuzza observed before Thursday’s session that Nvidia was trading approximately 14% under its 52-week peak. He identified this as among the widest discounts across major AI-related stocks he monitors, which include Astera Labs, Broadcom, and Micron Technology.
Favuzza suggested that Nvidia might offer “the most upside torque” should investors redirect capital toward AI-themed investments, especially through leveraged exposure strategies.
The broader semiconductor sector has demonstrated resilience throughout 2026 with minimal assistance from Nvidia. The VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) has advanced 19% year-to-date. DataTrek co-founder Nicholas Colas highlighted that most of SMH’s top ten constituents have delivered double-digit returns this year.
Strategic Partnerships Continue Expanding
Nvidia has maintained active business development efforts. During March, the company unveiled a collaboration with Marvell Technology, integrating it into Nvidia’s NVLink Fusion rack-scale infrastructure designed for AI data centers. Nvidia simultaneously committed $2 billion to Marvell while announcing joint initiatives spanning AI networking, optical interconnects, and silicon photonics technologies.
Earlier in March, Nvidia established agreements with Coherent and Lumentum Holdings focused on advanced laser technologies and optical networking capabilities, guaranteeing access to future manufacturing capacity.
CoreWeave broadened its computing arrangement with Meta on Thursday, an agreement incorporating access to Nvidia’s Vera Rubin chip portfolio.
A robust quarterly earnings report combined with an extensively attended GTC conference earlier this year proved insufficient to generate sustained upward momentum for shares. This historical pattern explains why market participants remain cautious about whether this winning streak represents genuine momentum or temporary market fluctuation.
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