Goldman Sachs raises AMD target to $640 on AI demand

Goldman Sachs analyst James Schneider raised the firm’s 2026 price target on Advanced Micro Devices to $640 from $450 on July 5 while keeping a Buy rating, a 42% increase that put Goldman well ahead of the broader market view. The new target sat about $99.81 above the Street’s average 12-month estimate of $540.19, making the call stand out as more than a routine reset for one of Goldman’s preferred long ideas in semiconductors.

Schneider’s note cast AMD as a direct beneficiary of the expanding AI infrastructure buildout and said the company’s MI300 series accelerators were gaining traction among hyperscalers. Goldman also argued that AMD was gaining ground against Nvidia in AI and data center markets. The language mattered inside the bank because it sharpened the line Goldman’s researchers will have to defend in front of clients: not just that AI demand is strong, but that AMD is taking share in the parts of the market where spend is still accelerating.

The stock moved immediately. AMD shares rose as much as 8.3% in early trading and later were up 6.6% at about $552.05, leaving the stock below Goldman’s new target but far above the level before the call. The move came after AMD had already guided quarterly revenue above expectations on strong AI chip demand, and Reuters reported in May that the shares hit record highs and helped spark a global chips rally on AI optimism.

Goldman’s higher target landed as other firms were also lifting AMD price objectives after the company’s results, reinforcing the view that the AI trade is broadening beyond Nvidia. For Goldman’s semiconductor team, that creates a familiar Street problem: every sharper call raises the standard for the next client meeting, the next valuation debate, and the next explanation of why one chipmaker deserves more credit than the rest. If AMD keeps executing on AI, Schneider’s $640 target will look prescient; if not, it will read as Goldman pressing its house view harder than peers.