Nvidia gets an upgrade from D.A. Davidson, which calls chipmaker ‘the heart of the AI trade’
D.A. Davidson is more bullish on artificial intelligence poster child Nvidia . The investment firm upgraded the graphics processing unit manufacturer to buy from neutral. Analyst Gil Luria accompanied the move by raising his price target to $210 per share from $195. Luria cited the growth in AI compute demand as a strong catalyst, and one that could likely sustain Nvidia’s growth into the next year and beyond. NVDA YTD mountain NVDA YTD chart “Our increasingly optimistic view of the growth in AI compute demand supersedes our list of concerns regarding NVDA,” he wrote. “Our perspective that AI will transform work through labor itself, as opposed to the IT tech stack, lends itself to a continued ramp in compute demand even before enterprise customers see a return on investment.” Despite potential pressure points for Nvidia such as increased competition and demand volatility in China, emerging bottlenecks and “exuberant expectations,” Luria said that “overwhelming growth in demand for compute” is ultimately “the only thing that matters.” Regardless of which segment this growth comes from, the analyst believes that Nvidia will be able to sustain growth over at least the next two years. “While we are not ready to endorse sell-side consensus, especially given uncertainty around China, we believe investors will look through small misses, as they have done the last couple of quarters,” he continued. “Which will continue to keep NVDA at the heart of the AI trade.” Luria added that Nvidia’s case looks especially compelling versus Apple, which he called a laggard in the AI race. “While AAPL may still offer defense in an uncertain environment, we prefer to go on offense, given the prospects for AI compute,” he wrote. Nvidia shares, which are up 32% year to date, rose slightly in the premarket following the upgrade. ( Learn the best 2026 strategies from inside the NYSE with Josh Brown and others at CNBC PRO Live. Tickets and info here . )
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