U.S. chipmaker Nvidia, which is leading the artificial intelligence (AI) semiconductor market, released results on the 20th (Korea time) for the third quarter (August to October), posting total revenue of $57.006 billion (about 83.4 trillion won). That was up 22% from the previous quarter and 62% from a year earlier, setting a new quarterly record.
Under U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), third-quarter gross margin was 73.4%, and non-GAAP gross margin was 73.6%. Diluted earnings per share (EPS) came in at $1.30 under both GAAP and non-GAAP.
Revenue topped the market forecast of $54.92 billion compiled by research firm LSEG, and EPS also beat the $1.25 estimate.
Growth in the core business of data centers was decisive. Third-quarter data center revenue was $51.215 billion, up 66.4% from a year earlier to a record high. Gaming revenue was tallied at $4.265 billion.
Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang said, "Blackwell revenue is surging, and graphics processing units (GPUs) for cloud use are already sold out," adding, "Demand for computing across training and inference continues to accelerate, and each institutional sector is growing exponentially." He added, "We have entered AI's 'virtuous cycle,'" and "The AI ecosystem is expanding very rapidly."
By business unit: ▲ Data center $51.215 billion ▲ Gaming $4.265 billion ▲ Professional visualization $760 million ▲ Auto $592 million ▲ OEM and others $174 million. With demand for AI server GPUs exploding, data center revenue rose sharply year over year.
Nvidia projected fourth-quarter revenue at $65 billion ±2%. Analysts expected $62 billion, with some forecasts as high as $75 billion. Nvidia's strong results are seen as the result of surging demand for artificial intelligence (AI) and a recovery in demand for server semiconductors.
While the market views this quarter's results as beating expectations, attention is also on Nvidia's comments regarding key variables such as intensifying competition and export controls to China. CEO Jensen Huang is expected to provide an update on the long-term sustainability of AI infrastructure demand and the status of major partnerships on the conference call.
After the earnings release, Nvidia's share price was rising in after-hours trading. At 4:37 p.m. Eastern time, Nvidia was up 3.64% at $193.30 from the previous close.