Nvidia partners with data center developer Cloverleaf

Nvidia has partnered with Cloverleaf Infrastructure, a 2024-founded data center developer that raised $300 million. The chipmaker reportedly acquired a minority stake, with potential investments reaching several hundred million dollars. This follows Nvidia's $1.5 billion investment in SB Energy's Ohio data center project, linked to OpenAI.

Morgan Stanley analyst Chris Moore maintained an overweight rating and $288 price target for Nvidia (NVDA) ahead of earnings, citing long-term concerns like market share and gross margins. He expects limited near-term multiple expansion. Moore noted Nvidia's stock typically dips post-earnings despite strong results. Other analysts are more bullish, with an average price target of $308.01, according to MarketBeat.

NVIDIA (NVDA) may ship its next-gen Rubin Ultra GPU with less memory (192GB-256GB) than initially planned (1TB), according to The Information. AMD (AMD) is confident in its Helios AI system, which ships later this year to major customers like Microsoft and Meta, and claims to have secured sufficient memory. Both companies are navigating a memory shortage in the AI chip market.

Etched, a startup founded by Harvard dropouts, reached a $21B valuation after securing $700M in funding led by Jane Street. The company claims its AI chips outperform Nvidia's in inference tasks, with faster processing times and lower energy use. Etched has signed over $1B in deals and poached talent from Nvidia, raising concerns about Nvidia's market dominance. However, analysts note Etched's early stage and Nvidia's broader product range.

Jefferies expects Nvidia (NVDA) to report $95B in Q2 revenue, exceeding estimates by $3B, driven by AI demand and the Vera Rubin product cycle. The firm forecasts Q3 revenue of $108B, $4.3B above consensus. Nvidia's market cap exceeds $5T, with shares up 17% YTD. Investors will watch Rubin shipments, margins, and AI financing commitments during the Aug. 26 earnings report.

AMD reported record revenue of $11.5B, up 50% YoY, beating estimates. Data center revenue doubled to $6.7B. Despite strong results, shares fell 8% after Elon Musk announced SpaceX would use NVIDIA chips exclusively. NVIDIA shares rose 3.4%. AMD raised its long-term market forecast to $2T by 2028, with AI accelerators contributing $1.4T. CEO Lisa Su reaffirmed guidance for server revenue growth.