Nvidia (NVDA.US) Blackwell GPU shipments are delayed again, with CEO of AMD (SMCI.US) expecting the delay to extend to early 2025.
SMCI CEO Charles Liang expressed cautious optimism about the growth of Nvidia's Blackwell GPU, expecting it to see a significant growth before the 3rd quarter of 2025. Although SMCI may see initial sales of Blackwell GPU in the 4th quarter, Liang believes the real sales peak will come in the 3rd quarter of 2025.
This delayed expectation of sales volume directly affects SMCI's forecast of revenue for fiscal 2025, which Liang expects to be between $26bn and $30bn, lower than the market consensus. In May, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang had indicated that Blackwell devices would be widely available before the year.
However, Nvidia's major customers including Meta Platforms(META.US), Google(GOOGL.US) and Microsoft(MSFT.US) have all implied that the release of Blackwell may be delayed. Nvidia has had to rework with TSMC(TSM.US), its foundry partner, to resolve design issues in the manufacturing process, leading to customers not receiving large shipments until the 1st quarter of 2025.
Despite this challenge, Liang remains optimistic about the prospects of Blackwell GPU. He said that once Blackwell GPU is released, SMCI is ready with systems and chassis scale design optimized for Blackwell.
The market's reaction to SMCI's earnings report was strong, with the company's share price falling 20% on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Nvidia's share price fell 5% on Thursday, bringing its cumulative decline over the past month to about 18%, while its share price has doubled since the beginning of the year.
SMCI's 4th quarter earnings report for fiscal 2024 showed that the company's revenue and profits fell short of analysts' expectations. Revenue for the quarter was $5.31bn, up 143.6% YoY, but slightly below the market consensus of $5.22bn. Net income was $353m, up significantly from $194m in the previous quarter; adjusted EPS was $6.25, below the company's previous guidance and analysts' average expectation of $8.25.
Despite the uncertainty of Blackwell GPU's sales growth, both SMCI and Nvidia are actively preparing to meet market changes in order to maintain their leading position in the competitive tech industry.