Nvidia’s High-Stakes Earnings Has Entire Market on Edge

(Bloomberg) -- Nvidia Corp.’s market-leading advance has left even the bulls questioning if an earnings beat will be enough to propel the AI chipmaker’s shares higher.

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The key now, for Nvidia and the entire market, is whether the company can meet revenue estimates and assure investors that it sees further growth in generative artificial intelligence. Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s trading desk has called it “the most important stock on planet earth,” given its outsize influence on equity gains this year.

“Nvidia has been the driver, the one stock that really set the tone,” said Kim Forrest, chief investment officer of Bokeh Capital Partners LLC. “That’s why everybody is fascinated by this thing and if it can put up another bunch of numbers that are impressive.”

Shares are down as much as 2.6% in early trading Wednesday after shedding 4.4% Tuesday. The stock now boasts a market capitalization of about $1.7 trillion. It has the third-highest weighting in the S&P 500, behind only Microsoft Corp. and Apple Inc., so a swing either way will add or erase billions of dollars in value for investors.

The stock is up nearly 40% in 2024, even with this week’s slip. That’s the biggest gain on the S&P 500 Index to start the year, and it builds on last year’s 239% surge, also topping the benchmark gauge. Nvidia has added some $490 billion in market value just this year.

Wall Street expects another banner quarter, wit