By Sean Williams
Publication Date: 2026-02-16 12:06:00
A “buy the rumor, sell the news” event may take shape, yet again.
For much of the last three years, artificial intelligence (AI) has been the hottest trend on Wall Street. Providing software and systems with the tools to make accurate, split-second decisions without human oversight is a game changer that’s expected to create trillions of dollars in global economic value.
Although a long list of publicly traded companies is benefiting from this artificial intelligence push, none exemplify this technological evolution quite like Nvidia (NVDA 2.21%). Since the end of 2022, Nvidia has added nearly $4.2 trillion in market cap and has become the most valuable company on Wall Street.
Image source: Nvidia.
Perhaps it’s no surprise that Nvidia’s operating results are the most anticipated of any public company. Though the bulk of earnings season is in the rearview mirror, the star of the show (Nvidia) is set to lift the hood on its fiscal 2026 fourth-quarter operating results (ended Jan. 25, 2026) following the closing bell on Feb. 25.
While Nvidia is expected to do what it does best — decisively surpass the consensus sales and profit forecast of Wall Street analysts — other factors suggest it’ll have a difficult time living up to the lofty expectations of investors.
Demand for Nvidia’s AI hardware has been borderline insatiable
When Nvidia reveals its fiscal fourth-quarter operating results in a little over a week, analysts will be looking for approximately $65.6 billion in…
