Buying and holding on to solid companies that have the potential to deliver above-average growth is one of the best ways to make money in the stock market. That's because the market is likely to reward such companies for their outstanding growth with healthy upside.
Marvell Technology (MRVL -0.36%) is one such company that has been registering terrific growth in its revenue and earnings in recent quarters. However, at the time of this writing, the semiconductor stock has lost 22% of its value on the market so far in 2025. Marvell stock's decline despite its phenomenal growth means that investors now have the opportunity to buy it at an attractive valuation.
What's more, the majority of the Wall Street analysts covering Marvell rate this semiconductor stock as a buy. Let's see why that's the case and check why you may regret not buying Marvell following its pullback this year.
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Marvell Technology's custom chips are set to drive phenomenal long-term growth
Marvell is known for designing application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs). These chips are designed to perform specific tasks. They have been in red-hot demand thanks to their ability to run artificial intelligence (AI) workloads in data centers with high efficiency and lower costs.
That's not surprising, as the custom nature of ASICs means that they are designed for carrying out specific functions. This is why they can outperform even graphics processing units (GPUs) that are meant for general-purpose computing applications.
The cost advantages and performance of these ASICs explain why they are expected to outsell GPUs in data centers for handling AI workloads in 2026. Market research firm TrendForce estimates that shipments of custom AI processors could jump nearly 45% next year, which would be well above the 16% increase in GPU shipments.
Marvell Technology is the second-largest player in the custom AI processor market after Broadcom. According to Marvell's own estimates, its share of the custom AI processor market was less than 5% in 2023. However, it expects to take that share up to 20% by 2028. The good part is that Marvell seems to be on its way to achieving its target, per various Wall Street analysts.
Investment banking and financial services provider Oppenheimer recently hiked its price target on Marvell stock to $115, which points toward 32% upside from current levels. Oppenheimer analysts point out that Marvell is on track to diversify its custom AI processor client base on the back of 20 new design wins that it has secured so far.
The likes of Amazon and Microsoft are set to release new custom AI processors next year based on Marvell's designs, positioning the company for a potentially higher market share. Even Bank of America analyst Vivek Arya had hiked his price target on Marvell stock in June this year, citing its potential to increase its customer pipeline for custom AI processors beyond Amazon, Microsoft, and Alphabet.
This positive analyst sentiment isn't surprising, since Marvell pointed out in June that it has more than 50 custom AI chip opportunities in its pipeline across more than 10 customers. These customers include the top four cloud hyperscalers in the U.S., along with emerging AI-focused cloud computing companies. The company sees a potential lifetime revenue opportunity worth $75 billion from these custom AI opportunities.
That's massive considering that its trailing 12-month revenue stands at just over $7.2 billion. As such, it won't be surprising to see Marvell sustaining the stunning growth that it has been witnessing of late. The company's revenue in the first six months of fiscal 2026 stands at $3.9 billion, up by 60% from the prior-year period. Its non-GAAP earnings have more than doubled during this period, rising by 139% to $1.29 per share.
Considering that Marvell's custom AI revenue opportunity is 10x the revenue it has generated in the past year, it definitely has the ability to keep growing at an eye-popping pace in the long run. That's why buying this AI stock is a no-brainer right now.
The valuation is too attractive to ignore
Out of 40 analysts covering Marvell stock, 32 rate it as a buy. That's not surprising as Marvell is trading at just 25 times forward earnings. Marvell's earnings multiple is lower than the tech-laden Nasdaq 100 index's forward earnings multiple of 29.
So, Marvell stock looks like a steal deal right now considering the pace at which its bottom line is growing, as well as the lucrative long-term opportunity that it is sitting on. All this makes Marvell a top growth stock to buy, as its AI-fueled growth could send the stock on a terrific long-term rally. In fact, the stock has shot up 28% in the past month, and the points discussed above suggest that more upside could be in the cards.
