Top Oppenheimer analyst Rick Schafer expects Nvidia to post stronger-than-expected results when it reports F3Q earnings on November 19. After reviewing recent data and Nvidia’s product momentum, the analyst raised his price target to $265 from $225 and kept an Outperform rating, saying demand for Nvidia’s AI chips “remains extremely strong.” The 5-star analyst believes Nvidia is well-positioned to beat both Q3 and Q4 expectations as cloud customers continue to lift their spending on AI hardware.
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It is worth noting that Schafer ranks 8 out of more than 10,000 analysts tracked by TipRanks. He has a success rate of 74%, with an average return per rating of 28% over a one-year timeframe.
Wall Street expects Nvidia to report a 54.3% year-over-year rise in Q3 FY26 earnings per share (EPS) to $1.25. Revenue is estimated to grow by 57% to $54.74 billion.
Why Oppenheimer Is Upbeat About Nvidia’s Q3 Earnings
Schafer pointed to strong demand for Nvidia’s new GB300 Ultra chips. He said the NVL72 system remains the top choice for large AI data centers, and orders continue to exceed supply.
He also noted CEO Jensen Huang’s recent comment that Nvidia could generate $500 billion in Blackwell and Rubin revenue by the end of 2026, which he believes shows how fast AI spending is rising across the industry.
Schafer expects data center revenue to remain the main growth engine. He sees this segment rising 19% quarter over quarter as customers move from older GB200 racks to the newer GB300 racks. He added that major cloud companies are installing around 1,000 racks each week, and Nvidia has already shipped 6 million Blackwell and Rubin chips, with another 20 million in backlog.
On the gaming side, he said better supply of Blackwell RTX cards is lifting sales. He also pointed to Nvidia’s new PC partnership with Intel (INTC) as a positive for future growth.
Top Analyst Raises Estimates Ahead of Earnings
Schafer raised his earnings forecasts for the next three years. He now expects Nvidia to generate more than $150 billion in free cash flow in 2026 and move toward $200 billion in 2027. He also sees gross margins approaching 75% by year-end.
With Nvidia stock up about 42% so far this year, Schafer still sees room for more gains ahead.
Is NVDA Stock a Buy, Sell, or Hold?
Currently, Wall Street has a Strong Buy consensus rating on Nvidia stock based on 37 Buys, one Hold, and one Sell recommendation. The average NVDA stock price target of $241.57 indicates 27.03% upside potential.
