Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Long Beach has increased its investment in NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA) by 20.6% during the third quarter of 2023, according to a recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor now holds 54,942 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,402 shares during this period. NVIDIA represents 2.2% of the trust’s overall investment portfolio, making it the 11th largest holding for the firm.
As of the latest filing, Farmers & Merchants Trust’s total holdings in NVIDIA were valued at approximately $10,251,000. Other institutional investors have also made notable adjustments to their positions in NVIDIA. For instance, Harbor Asset Planning Inc. purchased a new position in NVIDIA worth around $28,000 in the second quarter. Similarly, Winnow Wealth LLC acquired a new stake valued at $32,000, while Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC increased its position by 47.9%, bringing its total to 207 shares worth $33,000.
In a separate move, Spurstone Advisory Services LLC and Edentree Asset Management Ltd also bought new stakes in NVIDIA during the second quarter, valued at approximately $40,000 and $54,000 respectively. Overall, institutional investors now own approximately 65.27% of NVIDIA’s stock.
Insider Activity and Stock Performance
In recent insider trading activity, Executive Vice President Debora Shoquist sold 69,840 shares of NVIDIA on December 12, 2023, for an average price of $177.85, totaling $12,421,044. Following this transaction, Shoquist retained 1,424,603 shares valued at approximately $253,365,643.55, reflecting a decrease of 4.67% in her overall position.
Similarly, Director Harvey C. Jones sold 250,000 shares on December 15, 2023, for an average price of $177.33, amounting to $44,332,500. After this sale, Jones owned 6,933,280 shares valued at around $1,229,478,542.40, which indicates a 3.48% decrease in his stake. Over the last quarter, insiders have collectively sold 1,611,474 shares valued at approximately $293,285,232, with insiders owning 4.17% of the company.
Analyst Ratings and Market Insights
Several research firms have recently provided updates on NVIDIA’s stock. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating on January 6, 2024, while Loop Capital raised its target price from $250.00 to $350.00 in a report issued on November 3, 2023. Royal Bank of Canada and Evercore ISI also reiterated their “buy” ratings for NVIDIA in January 2024.
According to MarketBeat, NVIDIA currently holds an average rating of “buy” with a consensus target price of $263.98. Notably, four analysts have rated the stock with a “strong buy,” while forty-seven have assigned a “buy” rating, and two have rated it as “hold.”
Recent news surrounding NVIDIA remains largely positive. Wolfe Research increased its price target for NVIDIA to $275, indicating potential for growth. Additionally, recent reports suggest that China has conditionally approved DeepSeek to purchase NVIDIA’s H200 chips, which could alleviate geopolitical concerns surrounding revenue. Collaborations with major firms like Microsoft and Amazon are also in the works regarding investments in OpenAI, which may bolster NVIDIA’s long-term demand.
Despite the positive momentum, challenges loom. Reports from The New York Times indicate that companies like Amazon and Google are beginning to encroach on NVIDIA’s dominance in the AI chip market. Moreover, market analysts express caution due to macroeconomic factors and the company’s high valuation, which could lead to increased volatility.
As of January 5, 2024, NVIDIA shares opened at $191.13, with a market capitalization of $4.64 trillion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.43. The company’s debt-to-equity ratio stands at 0.06, and its current and quick ratios are 4.47 and 3.71 respectively. Over the past year, NVIDIA’s stock has fluctuated between a low of $86.62 and a high of $212.19.
NVIDIA’s recent quarterly earnings, reported on November 19, 2023, revealed earnings per share of $1.30, surpassing analysts’ expectations of $1.23. The company generated revenue of $57.01 billion, significantly above the consensus estimate of $54.66 billion, with a remarkable year-over-year revenue increase of 62.5%.
In addition to its financial performance, NVIDIA announced a quarterly dividend of $0.01 per share, paid on December 26, 2023. This dividend reflects an annualized yield of 0.0% and indicates a payout ratio of 0.99%.
Founded in 1993 and headquartered in Santa Clara, California, NVIDIA has evolved from a graphics chip manufacturer into a leader in accelerated computing technologies across various sectors. With co-founders including Jensen Huang, who serves as CEO, the company offers a diverse range of products, including graphics processing units (GPUs) for gaming and professional use, as well as high-performance data center accelerators for artificial intelligence applications.
