(Reuters) – Tech conglomerate Broadcom raised its annual revenue forecast on Wednesday, betting on higher demand for its networking equipment and custom chips from businesses investing in artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Shares of the Palo Alto, California-based company, which also unveiled a stock split, rose more than 9% in extended trading.
The company will carry out a 10-for-1 forward stock split, effective after markets close on July 12, with split adjusted trading beginning on July 15.
Broadcom’s shares have rallied more than 30% so far this year, after almost doubling in 2023, as investors bet heavily on chip stocks, anticipating towering gains at the back of generative AI technology.
Broadcom manufactures advanced networking chips that help move around vast amounts of data used by AI applications such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT, making it one of the big beneficiaries of increased spending by tech giants.
Its custom chips unit has also attracted orders from large cloud providers looking to reduce their dependence on Nvidia’s pricey processors, which are in short supply.
The company expects full-year revenue of about $51 billion, including contribution from VMware, compared with its prior forecast of about $50 billion. Analysts on average expect fiscal 2024 revenue at $50.42 billion, according to LSEG data.
It reported net revenue of $12.49 billion for the second quarter, compared with analysts’ estimate of $12.03 billion.
(Reporting by Arsheeya Bajwa in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)
