I know this sounds hard to believe, but Nvidia (NVDA 1.24%) stock actually traded for less than $15 just three years ago. That fact is surprising because, today, the stock has a significantly higher price tag. This company, the leader in the artificial intelligence (AI) chip market, has been among the key players driving S&P 500 gains in recent quarters. In fact, over the past three years, the stock has wowed investors, soaring more than 1,100% to about $180.
The reason for Nvidia's success is clear. Its position in the AI chip market has led to explosive earnings growth quarter after quarter. In the latest one, Nvidia delivered record-high revenue at $68 billion. That's a 73% year-over-year increase.
Considering this momentum, it's fair to ask the following question: Is Nvidia stock going to $300 in 2026? Let's find out.
Image source: Getty Images.
Nvidia's unstoppable earnings story
As mentioned, Nvidia's positive earnings story has been unstoppable, and there's reason to be optimistic about this trend continuing. The company spoke of ongoing high demand in the recent quarter, and a couple of elements could support this moving forward. First, we're in the middle of a major spending cycle, with cloud companies investing to build out infrastructure -- and Nvidia's high-powered graphics processing units (GPUs) are a necessary purchase here. They drive key AI tasks, and considering their popularity among customers, cloud companies will want to make them available.
The second important point is that Nvidia plans to launch its next update -- the Rubin platform -- later this year. This is part of Nvidia's pledge to update its GPUs on an annual basis. Demand for the earlier updates, Blackwell and Blackwell Ultra, has been high, so it's reasonable to expect this momentum to continue as customers aim to get in on the very latest AI innovations to fuel their projects.
NASDAQ: NVDA
Key Data Points
A bargain price
All of this could power Nvidia's stock price higher. Meanwhile, Nvidia today trades at an incredibly low price, at 22x forward earnings estimates. This, too, could encourage investors to get in on Nvidia stock and drive it higher.
But could it reach $300 a share? As I wrote a few weeks ago, I predict Nvidia may climb to about $250 this year. This represents a 37% gain from the March 2 market close and a market value of about $6 trillion, which is attainable.
That said, if the overall stock market environment improves, and uncertainties that have been weighing on investors' minds dissipate, Nvidia stock could climb higher, even touching $300 by the end of the year. But I think my initial scenario may be more reasonable.
In any case, the good news is this top AI stock has what it takes to advance over time, potentially offering long-term investors a major win.
