Goldman Sachs just doubled down on Nvidia Corp. (NVDA  ) after a blowout quarter, saying the AI chip giant now has a "clearer path" to outperform in the coming months.

In a note shared Thursday, Goldman Sachs analyst James Schneider reiterated his Buy rating on Nvidia Corp. and kept his 12-month price target at $250.

That target implies close to 30% upside from current levels.

A Strong Quarter For Nvidia, Even Against High Expectations

Nvidia reported fourth-quarter revenue of $68.1 billion, topping both Goldman's $67.3 billion estimate and Street consensus of $66.2 billion.

Operating EPS of $1.76 also came in well ahead of expectations. Data Center revenue - the key driver of Nvidia's AI-fueled growth - reached $62.3 billion, beating both Goldman and consensus estimates.

Gross margin held firm at 75.2%, while operating margin came in at 67.7%, both essentially in line with forecasts.

The standout: first-quarter guidance.

Nvidia projected revenue of $78 billion at the midpoint, significantly above Street expectations of $72.1 billion. Gross margin guidance of 75% also edged past consensus.

"We see Nvidia accelerating its growth profile in 2026 while maintaining a competitive edge in the market," Schneider said.

Can Hyperscalers' AI Spending Keep Climbing?

Schneider said investor expectations were elevated heading into the print, especially after hyperscalers revised capital expenditures higher.

Still, he believes first-quarter guidance exceeded those bullish assumptions.

Goldman outlined three key drivers it believes could push Nvidia shares higher in the coming months:

  • Higher hyperscaler CapEx in 2026 - with early indications that 2027 spending growth may also materialize.
  • Greater visibility from non-traditional AI customers, including potential investment and partnership developments with OpenAI, along with a finalized $10 billion investment in Anthropic.
  • Reasserted competitive leadership, as new AI models trained on Nvidia's Blackwell architecture are released.
Nvidia also announced an expanded partnership with Meta Platforms Inc. (META  ), which will deploy Blackwell and Rubin GPUs and collaborate on future-generation AI infrastructure.

What's Next For Nvidia Stock?

"We expect the stock to trade higher following a strong quarter and guidance relative to the Street, and relative bullish expectations heading into the quarter," Schneider said.

Goldman raised its EPS estimates by roughly 2% on higher revenue assumptions and maintained its $250 12-month price target, based on a 30x multiple applied to normalized EPS of $8.25 - implying near-30% upside from current levels.