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=== User: Holy fuck so taking all this shit and what we said for our timeline what do you think for our timeline and shit NVIDIA … ===
Holy fuck so taking all this shit and what we said for our timeline what do you think for our timeline and shit NVIDIA Q3 Earnings Preview: Estimates and Expectations

Consensus Estimates for Revenue and EPS

Wall Street anticipates another blockbuster quarter for NVIDIA on Wednesday. The consensus forecasts for fiscal Q3 2026 (quarter ended Oct. 2025) are around $54.6–$54.8 billion in revenue and $1.23–$1.26 in earnings per share (EPS)  . Zacks Investment Research pegs the consensus at $54.62 B revenue (+55.7% YoY, +16.9% QoQ) and $1.24 EPS (+53.1% YoY) . These figures align closely with NVIDIA’s own guidance of ~$54 B for the quarter. Notably, Refinitiv (LSEG) data shows similar expectations (EPS up ~53.8% YoY on ~$54.8 B sales) . In short, analysts are looking for roughly a 55% jump in revenue and earnings from the same quarter last year – an eye-popping growth rate for a company of NVIDIA’s size.

Such lofty estimates reflect the extraordinary AI-fueled demand for NVIDIA’s data-center chips. The data-center segment now makes up ~88% of total sales, and analysts project it surged ~58% year-on-year in Q3 . This is the key driver behind the massive revenue jump. For context, NVIDIA reported $46.7 B revenue just last quarter (Q2 FY26) and guided to ~$54 B for Q3 . No one on the Street expects a miss – in fact, NVIDIA has an exceptional beat history. It has exceeded consensus in 19 of the past 21 quarters (about a 90% hit rate) , and has beaten estimates in 3 of the last 4 quarters with an average EPS surprise of ~3.6% . The stage is set for another strong report, with investors laser-focused on whether NVIDIA meets or (more likely) beats these ambitious targets.

Analyst Expectations: Beat or Meet?

Most analysts believe NVIDIA will beat the Street’s estimates yet again. Given management’s tendency to guide conservatively, there’s a widespread view that actual results will come in above the consensus. For example, Oppenheimer’s Rick Schafer has stated he “sees room for Nvidia to beat Wall Street’s revenue and EPS estimates of $54.7B and $1.25” . Similarly, a Motley Fool analysis notes NVIDIA’s “strong track record of beating analyst expectations” and expects that trend to continue this quarter . The real question, as that analysis puts it, is “how much will Nvidia outperform expectations?” . A “massive beat” driven by booming high-end chip sales could indeed spark a big post-earnings rally .

It helps that business fundamentals remain red-hot. Hyperscale cloud giants and other AI customers are still voraciously ordering NVIDIA’s GPUs, and there have been no signs of demand slowing heading into year-end. In fact, analysts point out that major cloud providers’ capital spending showed “no signs of slowing in the build-out of data centers and other AI infrastructure” during their own Q3 earnings . “You’re not supposed to have any weakness given all the capital spending commitments,” notes Rockefeller Global’s CIO, who expects data-center demand to stay “pretty solid” . Given this backdrop, many on Wall Street expect NVIDIA to clear the high bar. Morgan Stanley’s team even called this potentially NVIDIA’s strongest quarter of the year and “one of its strongest earnings reports in recent memory,” per a preview note . In short, sentiment leans toward another beat – consistent with NVIDIA’s past – barring any unforeseen bottlenecks.

Guidance and Growth Outlook

Perhaps more crucial than the Q3 numbers will be NVIDIA’s guidance and commentary for the next quarter and beyond. Here, analysts are anticipating upbeat signals. The Street will be looking for Jensen Huang (CEO) & Co. to guide Q4 revenue materially higher again, given relentless AI chip demand. For example, Oppenheimer’s Schafer projects next quarter (Q4) revenue will jump to $61.5 B with $1.42 EPS . That implies sequential growth continuing at ~12%+ into Q4 – a sign of sustained momentum. Any official guidance in that ballpark (or above) would be taken very positively. As S&P Global’s research head put it, “how the company guides will be very important”, since lofty expectations are already “priced into the stock” . In other words, investors want reassurance that this AI boom has legs into 2024.

So far, signs point to robust forward demand. At NVIDIA’s recent GTC event, management revealed a staggering **$500 billion order backlog for its next-gen Blackwell and Rubin AI chips for 2025–2026 . This massive order book underscores that customers are lining up in advance – a huge pipeline indicator for future growth. Analysts like BofA’s Vivek Arya seized on this, noting that such a backlog “underscores strong demand and market confidence” in NVIDIA . Likewise, NVIDIA’s own long-term projections are bullish: Jensen Huang has estimated global data center spend on AI could reach $600 B in 2025 and $3–$4 trillion by 2030 . If that’s even close to true, NVIDIA’s revenue “runway” is enormous. For instance, one analysis posits NVIDIA could ultimately capture $1 trillion in annual revenue by 2030 if AI infrastructure spend hits the upper end of that range .

Of course, those are long-term conjectures – but they illustrate why analysts remain optimistic that growth is far from tapped out. In the near term, Wall Street will parse management’s tone and any hints of constraints. Key issues include supply chain and capacity (can NVIDIA keep up with unprecedented demand?) and real-world limits (e.g. data center power constraints that might slow deployments ). Barring any caution flags, the Street expects strong guidance. In fact, nobody is “floating the idea Nvidia will miss” guidance – the debate is more about whether these “towering” numbers can continue indefinitely . If NVIDIA’s outlook and commentary remain audacious (e.g. emphasizing “insatiable AI appetite” and ongoing backlog growth), it will reinforce the bull case. Conversely, any hint of order deceleration or capacity issues could give investors pause, but consensus seems to be that NVIDIA will deliver a confident message for Q4 and beyond.

Analyst Price Targets and Sentiment

Analysts’ price targets underscore overwhelmingly bullish sentiment despite the stock’s huge run-up. According to TipRanks and Finbold data, the average 12-month target is around $240 (USD) per share , implying substantial upside from the pre-earnings price (which was ~$188 ). Recent target revisions have mostly moved upward. In just the past week (ahead of earnings), we saw:
	•	Evercore ISI (Mark Lipacis) – Reiterated Buy, PT $261 (Nov 14), even stating the firm “would be buying NVDA shares ahead of the earnings report.” 
	•	Wells Fargo (Aaron Rakers) – Overweight, raised PT from $220 to $265 (Nov 14) . Rakers is optimistic NVIDIA can keep meeting surging chip demand by increasing supply, and he even models ~$209 B revenue for FY2026 and $301 B for FY2027 – growth once thought “fantasy” .
	•	Oppenheimer (Rick Schafer) – Outperform, raised PT from $225 to $265 (Nov 13)   after forecasting a $55 B quarter and highlighting “insatiable AI appetite”. Schafer believes NVIDIA’s Q3 will beat and that Street estimates for 2026 are still “too conservative.”
	•	J.P. Morgan (Harlan Sur) – Overweight, PT $215 (maintained as of Nov 17) . (JPM is a bit more measured but still bullish long-term.)
	•	BofA (Vivek Arya) – Buy, PT $275, one of the highest on the Street . Arya cites NVIDIA’s enormous order backlog ($500B) and leadership in AI as justification for nearly 50% upside from current levels .

Indeed, many analysts are effectively “pounding the table” on NVDA into earnings . Morgan Stanley’s Joseph Moore just bumped his target to $220 and called NVIDIA the “epicenter” of the AI build-out, poised for its “strongest performance of the year”  . Citigroup reiterated a Buy and raised its target to $220 as well, noting they expect “sales of $56.8 B” (above consensus) this quarter . Susquehanna likewise stayed positive, upping their target from $210 to $230 ahead of earnings .

Price target range: Among 30+ analysts, targets span from as high as $350 to as low as $100  . The $350 high mark comes from Loop Capital (Nov 3, 2025), and the $100 low from a much earlier cautious call by Seaport Global . Practically speaking, most active bullish analysts cluster in the mid-$200s (as seen above). The consensus target around $230–$242 implies roughly 25–30% upside  . In summary, analysts remain broadly bullish, arguing that NVIDIA’s valuation is justified by its superior growth. Even after a 40%+ YTD climb, they note NVIDIA trades around ~30× next-year earnings – similar to other mega-cap tech, but with far higher growth in revenue and EPS  . That suggests to many that NVIDIA still has room to run, especially if Wednesday’s report confirms the growth trajectory and strong guidance.

Institutional & Market Signals: Are Big Players Betting on a Post-Earnings Pop?

Beyond analysts’ words, market activity hints that many traders are positioning for a strong move on earnings. Options markets in particular show elevated expectations. According to TipRanks’ options data, traders are pricing in about a ±7.4% stock move on the earnings reaction . This implied swing is notably larger than NVIDIA’s average ±4% move over the past few earnings – indicating that volatility bets (calls and puts) are unusually high as the big day approaches . In other words, the market is “bracing” for a sizeable jump (or drop), reflecting the pivotal nature of this report for the AI trade.

Importantly, much of the options flow has skewed bullish. Data on “unusual” whale-sized trades shows that in recent weeks, large players overwhelmingly favored calls over puts. For instance, Benzinga’s options scanner picked up 229 large “uncommon” options trades, of which 206 were calls vs. only 23 puts – calls outnumbering puts nearly 9-to-1 by volume (about $20.2 M in call premium vs $1.13 M in puts)  . Such lopsided call activity suggests that big-money traders are betting on upside. In fact, analysts at Benzinga noted these sizeable bets and said, “when something this big happens with NVDA, it often means somebody knows something is about to happen.”  While we can’t know their motives, the overall options sentiment was 43% bullish vs 39% bearish (with the remainder neutral)  – a net positive skew. Additionally, the price range targeted by these whale trades has clustered around $150 to $255 strikes , with many bets in the $200+ zone, indicating expectations that NVIDIA’s stock could drive higher into the mid-$200s in coming months.

There are also indications of heavy institutional trading behind the scenes. Dark pool activity – off-exchange trades often used by institutions – has been elevated for NVDA. On Friday, Nov 14 (the last trading day of that week), over $1.3 billion worth of NVIDIA shares (≈7.1 million shares) traded through dark pools , making it one of the top dark-pool traded stocks. Such large block trades suggest that institutions have been actively positioning ahead of earnings, though it’s hard to know if they were predominantly buyers or sellers. Many traders interpret rising dark pool volumes in a stock like NVIDIA as a sign that funds are accumulating shares off-exchange, potentially in anticipation of good news.

Lastly, sentiment in the equity market around NVIDIA remains tentatively optimistic, albeit with some recent caution. The stock pulled back ~7% in the week or two before earnings (amid a broader tech sell-off) , which some see as investors “clearing the decks” for a potentially favorable entry. Evercore’s analyst explicitly said they would buy ahead of the print , and multiple funds increased stakes (for example, 24/7 Wall St. noted LSV Asset Management recently added NVDA shares ahead of earnings ). Even bearish developments like SoftBank reportedly selling a chunk of its NVIDIA stake in October were absorbed by the market , as dip-buyers stepped in. Taken together – bullish analyst calls, outsized call option flows, and large institutional trades – all point to high expectations. The “smart money” appears positioned for a strong report and potentially a post-earnings stock rise, provided NVIDIA delivers on the hype.

Bottom Line

With earnings just two days away, consensus is that NVIDIA will at least meet – and most likely beat – the lofty estimates on Wednesday. The real focus will be on forward guidance and management’s commentary, which investors hope will confirm that the AI growth story still has a long runway. Clues from Wall Street – from the flood of price target upgrades (average ~$240+)  to the bullish options/dark pool activity – suggest that many expect upside follow-through after the report. Of course, NVIDIA has a lot to live up to: expectations are sky-high, and any slip (or overly cautious outlook) could disappoint. But given its remarkable track record and the unabated demand for its AI hardware, analysts largely “expect good guidance” and believe the stock can trade higher post-earnings. In summary, the prevailing view is bullish – NVIDIA is poised to deliver another blowout quarter, and if it does, the stock could very well “skyrocket” again  , reinforcing its status as the marquee winner of the AI revolution.

Sources: Consensus estimates from Bloomberg/Zacks  ; analyst commentary from TipRanks, Finbold, Quartz   ; price target data from TipRanks/Finbold and Benzinga  ; options flow from Benzinga/Unusual Whales ; dark pool data from WhaleStream ; Reuters and Nasdaq for market context  .

Mind you earnings are Wednesday after bell