Nvidia projected 70% revenue growth in its next fiscal year, sending its stock up in after-hours trading, while the company defended its decision to provide capital solutions to its customers.

Why it matters: The stock is widely considered a bellwether for the health of the broader AI economy, but lately it has been trailing the broader semiconductor sector in market gains.

Zoom in: In its latest quarter, Nvidia topped revenue and earnings expectations.

  • The stock initially ticked downward in extended trading following the report — as investors maintained high expectations for the AI darling — but it jumped after Colette Kress, the chief financial officer, delivered the revenue projection on an earnings call.
  • Kress said the company remains "supply constrained," otherwise it could double revenue next year.

By the numbers: Nvidia posted revenue of $96.2 billion in its most recent quarter, more than doubling its year-earlier showing, while net income jumped 126% to $59.7 billion.

  • That exceeded S&P Capital IQ expectations of $92.1 billion in revenue and $51.2 billion in earnings for the period ended July 26.
  • Revenue from data centers — Nvidia's largest source of sales — rose 117%, to $89 billion.
  • The company projected revenue of $108 billion for its next reporting period, "plus or minus 2%." That would be the first time Nvidia has exceeded $100 billion in a quarter.

The impact: Nvidia shares — which had recorded a seven-day losing streak through Monday — rose 4.4% in after-hours trading.

The big picture: Nvidia's earnings report comes after a string of investments and capital maneuvers designed to boost the AI economy and bolster its customer base, including a recent deal to backstop an OpenAI data center.

  • The investments have called attention to concerns about a circular financing risk in the AI economy, which CEO Jensen Huang has dismissed.
  • Huang said he was "delighted" for Nvidia to invest in frontier AI labs, calling it a "once-in-a-generation opportunity" and saying, "I think the only regret that I have is that I didn't invest more and sooner."
  • Kress said the company would go further, teasing a plans to "provide selective credit enhancement for nearly two gigawatts of compute" for "another frontier AI lab."

The CFO acknowledged circular financing criticisms.

  • "We recognize the scale of this support, and we know some will call this circular financing. We see it differently," Kress said.
  • Without identifying companies by name, she added that "these are once-in-a-generation companies" and "their technology leadership is proven, and their customer traction and usage are skyrocketing. We expect them to become the largest technology companies in history."

Editor's note: This story has been updated with details from Nvidia's earnings conference call.