Latest news with #hardware
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Can GameStop Overcome Declines in Hardware & Software Sales?
GameStop Corp. GME reported a sharp decline in its core hardware and software segments in the first quarter of fiscal 2025, reflecting ongoing pressures in the physical gaming retail market. Hardware and accessories sales fell 31.7% year over year to $345.3 million from $505.3 million, while software sales declined 26.7% to $175.6 million from $239.7 million. Together, these segments contributed to a 16.9% drop in total net sales, which stood at $732.4 million compared to $881.8 million a year decline in hardware and accessories suggests softer demand for consoles and related products, likely influenced by the maturity of the current console cycle, shifts in consumer spending, and the growing appeal of digital and cloud-based gaming alternatives. Similarly, the decrease in software sales highlights reduced demand for traditional physical video games, as digital downloads and streaming services continue to gain accounted for 47.1% of net sales, down from 57.3%, whereas software fell to 24% from 27.2%, underscoring the shrinking contribution of GameStop's legacy businesses. These results signal structural headwinds for GameStop's traditional model, which remains heavily reliant on physical product sales despite industry trends favoring digital platforms. With more than 70% of its revenues still tied to declining segments, the company faces increasing pressure to modify its strategies. Sustained weakness in hardware and software sales highlights the urgency for GameStop to accelerate its diversification efforts into higher-growth areas such as collectibles and digital offerings to remain relevant in an evolving market landscape. GME's Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates Shares of GameStop have lost 24.4% year to date against the industry's growth of 14.5%. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research GME has underperformed its competitors, including Best Buy Co., Inc. BBY and Microsoft Corporation MSFT. Shares of Best Buy have declined 17.3%, while Microsoft shares have risen 19.3% over the same a valuation standpoint, GME trades at a forward price-to-sales ratio of 3.22X, slightly below the industry's average of 3.61X. It has a Value Score of C. GameStop is trading at a premium to Best Buy (with a forward 12-month P/S ratio of 0.36X) and at a discount to Microsoft (11.85X). Image Source: Zacks Investment Research The Zacks Consensus Estimate for GME's fiscal 2025 earnings implies year-over-year growth of 127.3% and the same for fiscal 2026 indicates a decline of 52%. Estimates for fiscal 2025 and 2026 have been upbound 28 cents and southbound 11 cents, respectively, in the past 60 days. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research GME currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) : Free Stock Analysis Report Best Buy Co., Inc. (BBY) : Free Stock Analysis Report GameStop Corp. (GME) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research ( Zacks Investment Research Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Globe and Mail
12 hours ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Will Broad Cloud Access Boost Momentum for Oracle's Hardware Business?
Oracle ORCL is leveraging its partnerships with top cloud providers to accelerate the momentum of its hardware business. By integrating Exadata X11M systems and Autonomous Database infrastructure into data centers operated by Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud, the company's multicloud strategy enables enterprises to access its high-performance database services within their preferred ecosystems. This approach reduces dependency on Oracle's own cloud while significantly expanding its hardware reach across global markets. Recent initiatives highlight this expansion. Oracle Database@Google Cloud launched in Japan, offering Exadata-powered services through Google's data centers, while Oracle Database@AWS allows seamless database workload migration to AWS' scalable infrastructure. These moves are expected to boost the hardware segment's top-line growth through the sale and installation of Exadata systems, storage servers and database machines, along with hardware costs capitalized and recovered over time via cloud subscriptions. To further meet rising demand, Oracle is aligning its hardware with AI growth by integrating Nvidia's latest GPUs and committing more than $40 billion to procure 400,000 Nvidia GB200 chips for its Stargate AI data center in Texas. Planned investments of $2 billion in Germany and $1 billion in the Netherlands underscore its commitment to scaling high-performance infrastructure through advanced hardware solutions. Oracle's hardware revenues are projected to reach $3 billion in fiscal 2026, following a 6.82% year-over-year increase in fourth-quarter fiscal 2025, highlighting the strength of its partnership-led growth model. Oracle Faces Tough Competition in Hardware Space Oracle faces stiff competition in advanced Hardware solutions from players like Hewlett-Packard HPE and Dell Technologies DELL. Hewlett-Packard offers powerful hardware solutions that support advanced computing, storage and networking facilities along with AI workloads. Hewlett-Packard's ProLiant Gen11 servers, featuring AMD EPYC Genoa chips and liquid-cooled GB200 NVL72 racks, target demanding AI workloads. With innovations like the XD690 housing eight NVIDIA GPUs, Hewlett-Packard delivers hybrid-cloud, energy-efficient hardware that rivals Oracle's Exadata in modern enterprise environments. Dell Technologies offers PowerEdge servers and PowerStore/PowerMax storage as flexible alternatives to Oracle's Exadata. While Exadata can deliver up to 36× higher I/O performance, Dell Technologies drives appeal through its VxRail hyper-converged systems, offering flexibility and cost savings. A major power company switched from Exadata to Dell Technologies' VxRail, reducing Oracle licensing exposure and saving over $5 million in total project costs. ORCL's Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates Shares of Oracle have appreciated 47.3% year to date, underperforming both the Zacks Computer and Technology sector's return of 9.5% and the Zacks Computer - Software industry's appreciation of 19.2%. ORCL's YTD Price Performance From a valuation standpoint, ORCL appears overvalued, trading at a trailing 12-month EV/EBITDA multiple of 30.15x, significantly higher than the Zacks industry's average of 20.55x. Oracle carries a Value Score of F. ORCL's Valuation The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ORCL's fiscal 2026 revenues is pegged at $66.57 billion, indicating 15.97% year-over-year growth. The consensus mark for ORCL's 2026 earnings is pegged at $6.73 per share, increased by a couple of cents over the past 30 days. The earnings figure suggests 11.61% growth over the figure reported in fiscal 2025. ORCL currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. One Big Gain, Every Trading Day To help you take full advantage of this market, you're invited to access every stock recommendation in all our private portfolios - for just $1. Zacks private portfolio services that closed 256 double and triple-digit winners in 2024 alone. That's about one big gain every day the market was open. Of course, not all our picks are winners, but members have seen recent gains as high as +627% +1,340%, and +1,708%. Imagine how much you could profit with a steady stream of real-time picks from all our services that cover a number of strategies to suit a variety of investing and trading styles. See Stocks Now >> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Dell Technologies Inc. (DELL): Free Stock Analysis Report Oracle Corporation (ORCL): Free Stock Analysis Report Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company (HPE): Free Stock Analysis Report
South China Morning Post
18 hours ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Return of Nvidia H20 chip to China clears major AI upgrade bottleneck, Morgan Stanley says
The sales resumption of Nvidia's H20 chips in mainland China will clear a hardware bottleneck and boost the country's ambitions in artificial intelligence despite lingering supply uncertainties about the highly sought-after processor, according to Morgan Stanley. The lifting of US export restrictions on the H20 'removes a key near-term headwind' for China's AI development, and AI spending by China's major cloud service providers was set to increase by around 60 per cent to 380 billion yuan (US$53 billion) this year, the US investment bank said in a report on Sunday. The outlook was positive for China's access to computing power and the US chipmaker's growth, despite questions about the supply of H20 chips, analysts said. Nvidia told its Chinese customers that the supply of the chips would be limited and that it did not plan to restart production of the model, according to a report on Saturday by technology media outlet The Information. However, Jensen Huang, Nvidia's co-founder and CEO, told Chinese media last week in Beijing that it currently took Nvidia about nine months from the placement of wafer orders to the delivery of finished chips, and that the company was 'working at full speed to restore the production capacity'. Nvidia did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday. Nvidia announced last week that it received US government approval to resume sales of the H20, a powerful graphics processing unit (GPU) specifically designed for the Chinese market to comply with US export control measures. Released in early 2024, the H20 was the top chip used by Chinese tech firms for AI training before Washington blocked its sale in April.
Bloomberg
20 hours ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Huawei Says Hardware Poses No Risk to Spain's Wiretapping System
Huawei Technologies Co. denied that hardware used in Spain's judicial wiretapping system poses any security risks for the country. The technology used within the wiretaps system 'is a common flash storage hardware that complies with the regulations related' to national security, Huawei's press office said in response to questions from Bloomberg News dated July 19. 'Huawei has no access to customer data, all the information stored in hardware belongs to and is at the exclusive disposal of the customer.'
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
The Smartest Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stocks to Buy With $1,000 Right Now
Key Points AI hardware investments are top picks due to the massive capital expenditures focused on AI. Cloud computing providers are benefiting from increased workloads. 10 stocks we like better than Nvidia › Artificial intelligence (AI) investing remains at the forefront of the market as companies continue to invest billions of dollars in this emerging technology. We've barely scratched the surface of what an AI-first economy looks like, and to achieve this, we'll need to build out significantly more computing capacity. This is a bullish sign for many companies in this space, and I believe four companies are particularly smart investments to make right now. So, if you have $1,000 (or any other dollar amount) available to deploy, starting with these four is a great idea. AI hardware: Nvidia and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing On the hardware side of things, Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) has been king of the AI world since the AI race began. Its graphics processing units (GPUs) are widely deployed in AI applications and have established themselves as the go-to option, with a market share of 90%. Nvidia has several bullish factors brewing, including the company reapplying for an export license to resume shipping GPUs to China, while being given assurances by the U.S. government that this license will be approved. This will help reaccelerate Nvidia's growth rate, as it projects second quarter revenue to grow 50% year over year; however, it would have been projected to grown 77% if Nvidia were allowed to sell into China during Q2. That's a massive boost and would allow Nvidia to sustain its jaw-dropping growth rate further into the future. This is a bullish sign for Nvidia's stock, underscoring that Nvidia isn't going anywhere in the AI world. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (NYSE: TSM) is a key supplier to Nvidia, as the company can't produce chips for its GPUs in-house. Instead, it purchases them from TSMC, the leading chip foundry. Taiwan Semiconductor has risen to the top by offering cutting-edge technology alongside best-in-class chip yields, which reduces scrap costs, leading to increased profit for TSMC and better prices for its customers. TSMC expects massive growth from AI to continue for some time. At the start of 2025, management projected that AI-related revenue would grow at a 45% compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) for five years. Chip orders are often placed years in advance, so when management tells investors that significant growth is coming, they should take notice. Both Nvidia and TSMC are poised for significant growth in the years to come, making them excellent stocks to buy now and hold for the long term. Cloud computing: Amazon and Alphabet Another industry that's benefiting from AI deployment is cloud computing. Many companies can't afford to build an expensive data center that may not be used to its full capacity, so it makes more sense to rent that computing power from a provider like Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) via Amazon Web Services (AWS) or Alphabet's (NASDAQ: GOOG) (NASDAQ: GOOGL) Google Cloud. Grand View Research found that the global cloud computing market size was around $750 billion in 2024, but that's expected to expand to $2.4 trillion by 2030. That growth is powered by both AI and non-AI workloads migrating to the cloud, and companies like Amazon and Alphabet are well positioned to profit from this trend. Each is also a critical part of its parent company's profit picture. In the first quarter, AWS accounted for 63% of Amazon's operating profits, despite comprising only 19% of total revenue. AWS is the profit driver for Amazon, and with its market-beating growth, it's slated to continue driving Amazon's stock higher. Google Cloud is still working toward AWS' impressive 39% operating margin, as it posted an 18% margin in Q1. However, it's growing faster than AWS (28% growth versus 17% growth) and could become a substantial part of Alphabet's profit picture in the coming years. Cloud computing providers, such as Amazon and Alphabet, are also benefiting from the rise of AI. With the overall cloud computing market expected to expand rapidly over the next few years, these stocks make for smart buys now. Should you invest $1,000 in Nvidia right now? Before you buy stock in Nvidia, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Nvidia wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $652,133!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $1,056,790!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 1,048% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 180% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 15, 2025 Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Keithen Drury has positions in Alphabet, Amazon, Nvidia, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Nvidia, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. The Smartest Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stocks to Buy With $1,000 Right Now was originally published by The Motley Fool
