Anthropic On Cloud Deal Spree\u00a0<\/p>\n
Anthropic has announced a\u00a0series of deals for additional cloud capacity in recent months as demand for its Claude software\u00a0has soared. The AI company, which\u00a0is preparing for an initial public offering, has struck or expanded deals with CoreWeave, Amazon, Google, Broadcom and xAI (through SpaceX).<\/p>\n
At a conference after the SpaceX deal was announced last week, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei said his company is \u201cworking as quickly as possible\u201d to secure more computing resources after experiencing \u201c80x growth\u201d in annualized revenue and usage in the first quarter of this year.<\/p>\n
Akamai provides cloud computing, cybersecurity, and content delivery network (CDN) services that help businesses run websites, apps, video, and digital content faster and more securely over the internet. Its customers range from hyperscalers, streaming platforms, and gaming companies to banks, retailers, and governments.<\/p>\n
Akamai\u2019s Q2 Forecast Underwhelms<\/p>\n
The AI deal came as a shot in the arm for Akamai, whose shares had been under pressure alongside other software companies amid a broad-based sector selloff in recent months.\u00a0<\/p>\n
To be sure, Thursday\u2019s announcement coincided with the company\u2019s quarterly report<\/a>, which included a softer-than-expected forecast for the current quarter that Akamai attributed to higher component costs.<\/p>\n Akamai forecast second-quarter revenue of between $1.08 billion \u200band $1.10 billion, compared with analyst estimates of $1.10 billion from LSEG\/Reuters. Its adjusted profit forecast of $1.45 to $1.65 per \u200bshare was also lower than analysts\u2019 $1.68 view. First quarter revenue rose 6% to $1.07 billion, in line with expectations.<\/p>\n Analyst, Retail View On AKAM<\/p>\n Craig-Hallum upgraded the stock to \u2018Buy\u2019 from \u2018Hold,\u2019 with a $190 price target, while at least 10 brokerages raised their price targets on the stock, according to the Fly.<\/p>\n Piper Sandler, which raised its price target to $156 from $114, said the AI deal would take a significant increase in capital expenditures, but would result in solid multi-year returns. The analyst forecast growth in 2027 and beyond to be greater than 10% that bulls have been playing for.<\/p>\n Currently, 14 out of 25\u00a0analysts rate the stock \u2018Buy\u2019 or higher, nine rate it \u2018Hold\u2019, and two rate it \u2018Sell\u2019 or lower, per Koyfin. Their average price target of $143.76 is 3% below the stock\u2019s close.\u00a0<\/p>\n On Stocktwits, the retail sentiment for AKAM has\u00a0remained \u2018extremely bullish\u2019 since late Thursday. The watcher count for the ticker surged nearly 4% last week.<\/p>\n Akamai shares are up 70% year to date, and the year is already shaping up to be the stock\u2019s best since 2006.<\/p>\n For updates and corrections, email newsroom[at]stocktwits[dot]com.<\/p>\n Read Next:\u00a0MU, SNDK, WDC: Memory Stocks Rally Overnight, Micron Eyes $1T Club<\/a><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n
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