Dell (DELL) Stock Explodes 32% Higher as AI Server Sales Skyrocket 757%

Key Highlights

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Dell Technologies stock jumped approximately 32% on Friday, tracking toward its strongest single-day performance on record
First-quarter revenue climbed nearly 88% compared to last year, with AI server sales reaching $16.1 billion — an explosive 757% surge
Adjusted earnings per share of $4.86 significantly exceeded the Street’s $2.94 forecast
Susquehanna elevated Dell to Positive with a new price target of $700, up from $138
J.P. Morgan increased its target to $500 from $280, while Morgan Stanley acknowledged missing the mark on Dell’s potential

Dell Technologies delivered a jaw-dropping earnings report Thursday evening, propelling its shares approximately 32% higher on Friday in what’s shaping up to be the company’s strongest trading session since its return to public markets in 2018.

Dell Technologies Inc., DELL

The results were nothing short of spectacular. First-quarter revenue soared nearly 88% year over year, fueled by unprecedented demand for AI infrastructure. Revenue from AI-optimized servers alone reached $16.1 billion — representing a staggering 757% jump compared to the year-ago period.

Adjusted earnings per share landed at $4.86, crushing Wall Street’s consensus forecast of $2.94.

Ben Reitzes, who leads technology research at Melius, didn’t mince words: “They beat every line in the model — so this wasn’t just AI, it was great execution.”

Wall Street Rushes to Adjust Forecasts

The blowout results triggered a flurry of target price increases Friday morning.

Susquehanna delivered the most dramatic revision, elevating Dell to Positive from Neutral while boosting its price target to $700 from $138. The investment firm highlighted AI server growth occurring without margin compression, expanding opportunities in inferencing workloads, and stronger-than-anticipated performance across client solutions.

J.P. Morgan maintained its Overweight stance while increasing its target to $500 from $280. Analyst Samik Chatterjee observed that Dell’s revised fiscal 2027 guidance was lifted “materially once again,” with customer demand running significantly ahead of projections and order pipeline clarity extending deeper into the calendar.

Dell’s revised full-year AI revenue forecast of $60 billion suggests 144% annual growth, per J.P. Morgan’s analysis.

Citi maintained its Buy recommendation and boosted its target to $475 from $290, characterizing the quarter as an “exceptional beat and raise” with customer demand persistently outpacing available supply.

Morgan Stanley Acknowledges Misjudgment

Morgan Stanley, currently rated Underweight with a $170 target, offered a rare mea culpa in Friday’s research note.

“We got this one wrong, and our model/PT are under review,” wrote analysts headed by Erik Woodring. They described it as “one of the most impressive quarters we’ve seen in our time covering Hardware.”

Conventional server revenue nearly doubled year over year. Storage solutions recorded their fastest expansion in three years. PC division operating margins reached near-peak levels. Full-year guidance received an approximately 40% upward adjustment.

Dell also secured a Pentagon contract valued at $9.7 billion earlier this week to deliver software solutions to U.S. military operations.

Heading into Thursday’s earnings announcement, Dell’s stock had already climbed nearly threefold over the preceding twelve months.

J.P. Morgan acknowledges that Dell’s second-half outlook incorporates a $10 billion sequential revenue deceleration — though analysts emphasize this reflects supply constraints rather than weakening demand, and anticipate continued guidance increases as production capacity expands.

Dell increased its full-year revenue projection to reflect approximately 50% annual growth.

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