NVIDIA Corp. shares edged higher in pre-market trading Thursday after the AI chip leader reported blockbuster fiscal fourth-quarter results that topped Wall Street expectations, though investor enthusiasm remained tempered amid ongoing questions about the sustainability of the artificial intelligence boom.

NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA) closed at $195.56 on Wednesday, up $2.71 or 1.41%, with after-hours and pre-market activity pushing it toward $197. Pre-market quotes showed gains of around 0.7% to 1% as of early Thursday. The stock has traded in a 52-week range of $86.62 to $212.19, reflecting volatility tied to AI hype and periodic pullbacks.

Tech giants in the AI race have been spending billions of dollars for GPUs made by Nvidia, considered a leader when it comes to chips that power the technology
NVIDIA AFP

The company's fiscal fourth quarter, ended Jan. 25, 2026, delivered record revenue of $68.1 billion, a 73% surge from the same period a year earlier and a 20% increase sequentially. Analysts had anticipated around $66 billion, according to consensus estimates from LSEG and other sources. Adjusted earnings per share came in at $1.62, beating expectations of $1.53.

Data Center revenue, the powerhouse segment fueled by demand for GPUs in AI training and inference, reached a record $62.3 billion — up 75% year over year and 22% from the prior quarter. The segment accounted for the vast majority of total sales, underscoring NVIDIA's dominance in the AI infrastructure market.

For the full fiscal 2026 year, NVIDIA posted revenue of $215.9 billion, a 65% jump from the previous year. GAAP net income for the year hit $120.1 billion, with diluted EPS of $4.90.

CEO Jensen Huang highlighted accelerating adoption of AI technologies, including agentic systems and reasoning models. In prepared remarks, he noted that "compute and revenues are equated" as customers race to build out AI capabilities. Huang emphasized broadening ecosystems and "skyrocketing" demand for advanced AI agents.

The company issued optimistic guidance for the current quarter (fiscal first quarter 2027), projecting revenue of $78 billion, plus or minus 2%. That figure comfortably exceeded analyst models, which had hovered around $66 billion to $72 billion in some forecasts. Gross margins remained robust, with non-GAAP at 75.2%.

Despite the beats on both top and bottom lines, and the raised outlook, NVIDIA shares showed only modest movement in extended trading. Analysts pointed to a "show-me-more" sentiment among investors accustomed to outsized beats in recent quarters. Concerns linger over potential competition from rivals like AMD and Intel, customer concentration risks — particularly with major cloud providers — and questions about whether AI capital spending will moderate after years of explosive growth.

Some market watchers described the reaction as muted, with the stock failing to rally sharply despite the strong numbers. One CNBC report noted that "investor concerns around the AI infrastructure boom dampened enthusiasm" for the results.

NVIDIA's trajectory has made it one of the world's most valuable companies, with a market capitalization approaching or exceeding $4.8 trillion in recent sessions. The stock has more than doubled in value over the past year in some periods, though it has pulled back from October 2025 highs amid broader tech sector rotation and valuation debates.

The earnings release comes as Big Tech continues pouring billions into AI data centers. NVIDIA's GPUs remain the go-to hardware for training large language models and running inference at scale. Supply chain commitments rose significantly, with the company noting strategic inventory secures to meet demand "beyond the next several quarters."

Huang and CFO Colette Kress addressed ecosystem expansion during the earnings call, pointing to partnerships and software advancements that extend beyond raw chip sales. They also touched on limited H200 shipments to China amid export restrictions, though no meaningful revenue impact was reported yet.

Wall Street remains broadly bullish on NVIDIA's long-term prospects, with many analysts maintaining buy ratings and high price targets. However, the bar is extraordinarily high after multiple quarters of dramatic outperformance.

As AI adoption spreads from hyperscalers to enterprises and edge applications, NVIDIA is positioning itself at the center. Whether the current quarter's $78 billion forecast materializes will be a key test of whether the AI spending cycle has further legs.