Key Takeaways
- Shares of NVDA dropped approximately 2.6% during premarket hours Thursday despite encouraging analyst commentary following GTC
- Raymond James elevated its price objective to $323 from a previous $291, keeping its Strong Buy recommendation
- Truist Securities increased its price objective to $287 from $283, maintaining its Buy stance
- The chipmaker disclosed $1 trillion in aggregate GPU order backlog extending through 2027
- Analyst consensus remains Strong Buy: 40 Buy recommendations, 1 Hold; mean price objective $274.16
Shares of Nvidia experienced a decline of approximately 2.6% during Thursday’s premarket session on March 19, despite a pair of prominent Wall Street firms increasing their price objectives after the chipmaker’s yearly GTC conference.
The gathering, which Truist Securities analyst William Stein characterized as “the Super Bowl of AI,” showcased new product releases, strategic partnership reveals, and a substantial revenue outlook disclosure from company leadership.
Raymond James analyst Simon Leopold elevated his price objective to $323 from a prior $291, maintaining his Strong Buy recommendation. He highlighted Nvidia’s refreshed projection for $1 trillion in aggregate GPU revenue extending through 2027, suggesting this estimate may prove cautious.
Leopold noted that incorporating revenues from Vera Rubin Ultra alongside the Groq LPX platform, overall AI data center income through 2027 could approach approximately $1.3 trillion.
Truist’s Stein similarly boosted his price objective, adjusting it to $287 from $283, while reaffirming a Buy recommendation. His analysis highlighted three primary takeaways from the second day of GTC proceedings.
Initially, company executives proclaimed 2025 as “the year of inference,” signaling a marketplace transition from training-centric infrastructure to large-scale production inference deployments. Stein identified three demand catalysts: generative AI expanding token requirements, OpenClaw establishing what Nvidia describes as a “ChatGPT moment” for Agentic AI applications, and accelerating momentum in physical AI initiatives including self-driving vehicles and humanoid robotics.
Additionally, Nvidia is emphasizing “tokenomics” — measuring tokens per second per watt — as the critical benchmark for inference efficiency. The corporation is tackling this challenge through its rack-scale Vera Rubin infrastructure, which enables clients to configure combinations of five distinct resource rack configurations.
$1 Trillion Revenue Backlog Disclosed
The standout announcement from GTC was Nvidia’s revealed revenue backlog of $1 trillion stemming from Blackwell and Vera Rubin commitments extending through 2027. This represents a significant jump from the $500 billion through 2026 figure the company referenced previously.
Current Wall Street projections for data center revenue stand at approximately $950 billion spanning 2025–2027. Stein anticipates “at least modest upside” for 2026 and 2027 considering management’s guidance.
He adjusted his calendar year 2027 data center revenue projection upward to $468 billion from a prior $439 billion. His earnings per share forecast for that period increased to $11.48 from $10.12.
Despite the optimistic analyst sentiment, the stock demonstrated a contrary reaction. NVDA traded down roughly 2.6% ahead of Thursday’s opening bell.
NVDA Price Objectives and Street Consensus
The consensus rating on NVDA across Wall Street remains Strong Buy, featuring 40 Buy ratings against a single Hold recommendation. The mean price objective stands at $274.16, suggesting approximately 52% potential upside from present trading levels.
NVDA has advanced 56% during the trailing 12-month period but remains more than 3% negative on a year-to-date basis entering Thursday’s trading session.
The mean analyst price objective of $274.16 sits meaningfully beneath both the Raymond James and Truist targets established this week.
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