Latest news with #CloudPlatform
Mint
8 hours ago
- Business
- Mint
Nvidia vs Microsoft: Which AI heavyweight will hit $4 trillion first?
The race to become the first $4 trillion company is on. Artificial-intelligence heavyweights Microsoft and Nvidia continue to battle to be the world's most valuable company by market capitalization, after surpassing the $3 trillion milestone last year. Twice this month, Microsoft unseated Nvidia as the most valuable company, but Nvidia regained its title Wednesday. On Thursday, its shares clinched a four-day winning streak and record close of $155.02. That put Nvidia's market value at $3.782 trillion, ahead of Microsoft's $3.697 trillion. Now, it's just a matter of who gets to $4 trillion first. Wedbush analysts say we will find out soon enough. 'We believe both Nvidia and Microsoft will hit the $4 trillion market cap club this summer and then over the next 18 months the focus will be on the $5 trillion club," the analysts wrote in a research note Friday. They characterize Nvidia and Microsoft as the so-called poster children of the AI revolution, which they say 'represents the biggest tech transformation in over 40 years." After all, Nvidia's momentous ascent has been the stuff of dreams for AI fans. Interest in AI reached new heights when ChatGPT launched in late 2022, and Nvidia's powerful graphics processing units emerged as a solution to power the technology. Today, Nvidia is widely regarded as the chip maker of choice for hyperscalers, Microsoft included. Nvidia stands at the forefront, 'as they are the only game in town with their chips the new gold and oil." The company's dominance allows CEO Jensen Huang to have 'the best perch and vantage point to discuss overall enterprise AI demand," the analysts contended. Microsoft's AI story has been equally compelling for bulls. The company once known for the Windows operating system and Microsoft Office suite has rebranded itself into an AI enterprise—if the language in its latest earnings report is any indication. Azure, Microsoft's flagship cloud computing platform, offers a suite of tools that allow developers to build and deploy AI applications. Its footing in the cloud computing space, alongside other hyperscalers like Alphabet, is a key advantage: The need for cloud compute is only expected to grow as the adoption of AI, a power-intensive technology, ramps up. As more AI use cases are identified, the Wedbush team expects Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud Platform to 'acquire AI-capable chips, build AI-capable service offerings, and sell those services into their respective installed bases." Nvidia stock rose 1.3% to $157.11 on Friday. Wedbush maintains an Outperform rating and $175 price target on the shares. Microsoft was flat at $497.67. The firm rates Microsoft at Outperform with a $600 target price. Wedbush Fund Advisers launched the Dan IVES Wedbush AI Revolution ETF earlier this month, which includes Microsoft, Nvidia, and the other Magnificent Seven tech stocks.
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
1 Nasdaq 100 Stock Worth Investigating and 2 to Steer Clear Of
The Nasdaq 100 (^NDX) is home to some of the biggest success stories in tech and growth investing. However, certain stocks in the index face challenges like profitability concerns, rising costs, or shifts in market trends. Even among high-growth companies, some are struggling, which is why we built StockStory - to help you separate winners from losers. That said, here is one Nasdaq 100 stock driving the future of tech and two that may struggle. Market Cap: $2.19 trillion Founded by Jeff Bezos after quitting his stock-picking job at D.E. Shaw, Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) is the world's largest online retailer and provider of cloud computing services. Why Are We Hesitant About AMZN? Amazon revolutionized the way consumers shop. But its capital-intensive online retail business caps its profitability, leading to margins that lag behind its Magnificent 7 peers. Although Amazon Web Services is a gold mine producing mission-critical infrastructure, its outsized scale limits its growth rate compared to smaller peers such as Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud Platform. Returns on invested capital are well below their pre-COVID peak as the company is in the middle of an investment cycle. Will Amazon ever harvest profits or keep pushing them to the future? At $206.51 per share, Amazon trades at 32.4x forward price-to-earnings. To fully understand why you should be careful with AMZN, check out our full research report (it's free). Market Cap: $44.34 billion Processing over 2.8 billion insurance transaction records annually through one of the world's largest private databases, Verisk Analytics (NASDAQ:VRSK) provides data, analytics, and technology solutions that help insurance companies assess risk, detect fraud, and make better business decisions. Why Does VRSK Worry Us? Muted 1.9% annual revenue growth over the last five years shows its demand lagged behind its business services peers Earnings growth over the last two years fell short of the peer group average as its EPS only increased by 8.7% annually Verisk is trading at $317.33 per share, or 43.9x forward P/E. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than VRSK. Market Cap: $63.17 billion Founded in 1982 by John Walker and growing into one of the industry's behemoths, Autodesk (NASDAQ:ADSK) makes computer-aided design (CAD) software for engineering, construction, and architecture companies. Why Are We Positive On ADSK? Average billings growth of 23.1% over the last year enhances its liquidity and shows there is steady demand for its products Software is difficult to replicate at scale and results in a best-in-class gross margin of 92% Disciplined cost controls and effective management resulted in a strong trailing 12-month operating margin of 20.3% Autodesk's stock price of $294.80 implies a valuation ratio of 8.9x forward price-to-sales. Is now the right time to buy? See for yourself in our comprehensive research report, it's free. Donald Trump's victory in the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election sent major indices to all-time highs, but stocks have retraced as investors debate the health of the economy and the potential impact of tariffs. While this leaves much uncertainty around 2025, a few companies are poised for long-term gains regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate, like our Top 5 Strong Momentum Stocks for this week. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 183% over the last five years (as of March 31st 2025). Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,545% between March 2020 and March 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-micro-cap company Tecnoglass (+1,754% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today for free. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
3 Reasons We Love Alphabet (GOOGL)
Alphabet has been treading water for the past six months, recording a small loss of 0.6% while holding steady at $168.13. Is now the time to buy GOOGL? Find out in our full research report, it's free. Started by Stanford students Larry Page and Sergey Brin in a Menlo Park garage, Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) is the parent company of the eponymous Google Search engine, Google Cloud Platform, and YouTube. Alphabet proves that huge, scaled companies can still grow quickly. The company's revenue base of $166.6 billion five years ago has more than doubled to $359.7 billion in the last year, translating into an incredible 16.6% annualized growth rate. Over the same period, Alphabet's big tech peers Amazon, Microsoft, and Apple put up annualized growth rates of 17%, 14.3%, and 8.4%, respectively. Operating margin is the key profitability measure for Alphabet. It's the portion of revenue left after accounting for all operating expenses – everything from the IT infrastructure powering online searches to product development and administrative expenses. Alphabet has been a well-oiled machine over the last five years. It demonstrated elite profitability for a consumer internet business, boasting an average operating margin of 29%. A closer examination is required, however, because the company's individual business lines have very different margin profiles. We track the long-term change in earnings per share (EPS) because it shows whether a company's growth is profitable. It also explains how taxes and interest expenses affect the bottom line. Alphabet's EPS grew at an astounding 29.3% compounded annual growth rate over the last five years, higher than its 16.6% annualized revenue growth. This tells us the company became more profitable on a per-share basis as it expanded. These are just a few reasons why we think Alphabet is a high-quality business, but at $168.13 per share (or 18.6× forward price-to-earnings), is now the right time to buy the stock? See for yourself in our comprehensive research report, it's free. Market indices reached historic highs following Donald Trump's presidential victory in November 2024, but the outlook for 2025 is clouded by new trade policies that could impact business confidence and growth. While this has caused many investors to adopt a "fearful" wait-and-see approach, we're leaning into our best ideas that can grow regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate. Take advantage of Mr. Market by checking out our Top 5 Growth Stocks for this month. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 176% over the last five years. Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,545% between March 2020 and March 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-small-cap company Comfort Systems (+782% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
1 Profitable Stock Worth Your Attention and 2 to Approach with Caution
While profitability is essential, it doesn't guarantee long-term success. Some companies that rest on their margins will lose ground as competition intensifies - as Jeff Bezos said, "Your margin is my opportunity". A business making money today isn't necessarily a winner, which is why we analyze companies across multiple dimensions at StockStory. That said, here is one profitable company that generates reliable profits without sacrificing growth and two best left off your watchlist. Trailing 12-Month GAAP Operating Margin: 17.4% Started by Eric Yuan who once ran engineering for Cisco's video conferencing business, Zoom (NASDAQ:ZM) offers an easy to use, cloud-based platform for video conferencing, audio conferencing and screen sharing. Why Do We Think Twice About ZM? Underwhelming ARR growth of 3.1% over the last year suggests the company faced challenges in acquiring and retaining long-term customers Estimated sales growth of 2.5% for the next 12 months implies demand will slow from its three-year trend Free cash flow margin is forecasted to shrink by 5 percentage points in the coming year, suggesting the company will consume more capital to keep up with its competitors Zoom is trading at $78.50 per share, or 5.2x forward price-to-sales. To fully understand why you should be careful with ZM, check out our full research report (it's free). Trailing 12-Month GAAP Operating Margin: 13.4% Founded by two brothers from Texas, YETI (NYSE:YETI) specializes in durable outdoor goods including coolers, drinkware, and other gear tailored to adventure enthusiasts. Why Does YETI Fall Short? Annual revenue growth of 7.1% over the last two years was below our standards for the consumer discretionary sector Anticipated sales growth of 6.2% for the next year implies demand will be shaky Eroding returns on capital suggest its historical profit centers are aging YETI's stock price of $28.82 implies a valuation ratio of 9.9x forward P/E. If you're considering YETI for your portfolio, see our FREE research report to learn more. Trailing 12-Month GAAP Operating Margin: 32.7% Started by Stanford students Larry Page and Sergey Brin in a Menlo Park garage, Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) is the parent company of the eponymous Google Search engine, Google Cloud Platform, and YouTube. Why Are We Bullish on GOOGL? Alphabet's dominant Google Search sits on the pantheon of the best businesses ever. This is reflected in its robust long-term revenue growth and elite operating margin. The company's profit margins have become even higher over time, speaking to its scale advantages and operating efficiency not only in its core Search business but also in Google Cloud Platform and YouTube. Revenue growth and increasing operating margins are the key ingredients for strong EPS growth. Google has these, and when also factoring in its share repurchases, you can see why EPS has exploded over the long term. At $163.84 per share, Alphabet trades at 18.1x forward price-to-earnings. Is now the time to initiate a position? Find out in our full research report, it's free. Donald Trump's victory in the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election sent major indices to all-time highs, but stocks have retraced as investors debate the health of the economy and the potential impact of tariffs. While this leaves much uncertainty around 2025, a few companies are poised for long-term gains regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate, like our Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 175% over the last five years. Stocks that made our list in 2019 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+2,183% between December 2019 and December 2024) as well as under-the-radar businesses like Comfort Systems (+751% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today for free.
Techday NZ
28-04-2025
- Business
- Techday NZ
Smart Communications expands cloud archive platform with Joisto
Smart Communications has acquired Joisto, a cloud data archive company, expanding its cloud-based platform for enterprise customer communications. The acquisition will allow Smart Communications' customers to store, manage, and retrieve digital records and documents securely, supporting compliance with regulatory data retention requirements in highly regulated sectors. Leigh Segall, Chief Executive Officer of Smart Communications, said, "We're delighted to incorporate Joisto's deep expertise in cloud archival into Smart Communications. Our leading Conversation Cloud Platform already enables our customers to manage sophisticated customer conversations at tremendous scale. With the addition of Joisto, we will extend these capabilities to meet an increasing need for regulatory-compliant and readily accessible storage of these conversations in the cloud. Together we will support customers worldwide as they continue their journey to modernise and transform customer conversations." Joisto's solution integrates with a variety of corporate systems through comprehensive APIs, allowing organisations to store documents regardless of source. It features extensive data-ingestion capabilities and a scalable cloud architecture, supporting large document volumes and remote access. The system is designed to comply with industry regulations, including GDPR, focusing on document integrity, authorisation, and user validation. Tommi Hänninen, Chief Executive Officer of Joisto, said, "Joisto is thrilled to join forces with Smart Communications. We deeply understand the importance of archival in regulated industries and we are especially proud to partner with an organisation that is equally passionate about providing industry-leading capabilities through a modern, cloud-based architecture. The combination of Smart Communications and Joisto represents an exciting step forward for both companies and our customers." The acquisition follows a period of rapid growth for Smart Communications, which has consolidated its presence in the cloud Customer Communications Management (CCM) and Interaction Experience Management (IXM) sectors. The company has attracted industry recognition for its work with healthcare, financial services, insurance, and government clients. Industry analyst groups such as IDC, Aspire, Aragon, Datos, and Celent have rated Smart Communications as a strategic leader, citing its vision, cloud strategy, and product development. Smart Communications has indicated that it will continue to extend its Conversation Cloud platform through ongoing integrations and partnerships with other vendors, as well as facilitating seamless conversations and archival solutions for enterprise customers. Follow us on: Share on:
