Nvidia closes with $2 trillion valuation as Dell stokes AI rally

Nvidia's stock market value closed above $2 trillion for the first time on Friday, after an upbeat report from Dell Technologies reignited Wall Street's AI-fueled rally.

Nvidia's stock added 4 percent after Dell, which sells high-end servers made with Nvidia's processors, gave an upbeat forecast late on Thursday, pointing to a surge in orders for its AI-optimized servers.

Dell's shares soared as much as 38 percent to a record high before ending the session with a 32 percent gain.

Friday's rally put Nvidia's market capitalization at $2.06 trillion, making it Wall Street's third most valuable company behind Microsoft and Apple, at $3.09 trillion and $2.77 trillion, respectively.

Super Micro Computer, another company that sells servers made with Nvidia's chips, jumped 4.5 percent.

Other chipmakers exposed to AI rallied to record highs, with Broadcom and Marvell Technology each up about 8 percent, while Advanced Micro Devices climbed over 5 percent.

The PHLX chip index rallied 4.3 percent to its own record high, lifting its 2024 gain to 18 percent.

Nvidia controls about 80 percent of the high-end AI chip market, with customers including ChatGPT creator OpenAI, Microsoft, Alphabet, and Meta Platforms, snapping up tight supplies of its components to compete in the fast-emerging generative AI sector.

The company has recently become Wall Street's most traded stock by value, day to day, replacing Tesla. Investors exchanged $36 billion worth of Nvidia's stock on average over the past 30 sessions, compared to $21 billion a day for Tesla.

Trading in Nvidia on Friday reached $38 billion worth of shares.

On February 23, the Santa Clara, California-based company added $277 billion in stock market value in just one session, a Wall Street record, after it forecast a roughly threefold surge in quarterly revenue.

Nvidia's stock has risen 66 percent in 2024, after more than tripling in value last year. Last month, its stock market value overtook Amazon and Alphabet.

A week ago, Nvidia's stock market value edged above $2 trillion for the first time before receding by the end of the session.

Saudi Aramco has a $2.045 trillion market capitalization, although over 90 percent of it is closely held by the government of Saudi Arabia and less than 2 percent of its shares are available for trading by investors, according to LSEG data.