{"id":62176,"date":"2026-05-21T00:38:32","date_gmt":"2026-05-21T04:38:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/nvidia-and-singtel-surge-on-ai-momentum-retail-outlook-diverges-for-target-and-lowes\/62176\/"},"modified":"2026-05-21T00:38:32","modified_gmt":"2026-05-21T04:38:32","slug":"nvidia-and-singtel-surge-on-ai-momentum-retail-outlook-diverges-for-target-and-lowes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/nvidia-and-singtel-surge-on-ai-momentum-retail-outlook-diverges-for-target-and-lowes\/62176\/","title":{"rendered":"NVIDIA and Singtel Surge on AI Momentum; Retail Outlook Diverges for Target and Lowe\u2019s"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Jefferies increases NVIDIA\u2019s price target to $300<\/strong>, up from <strong>$275<\/strong>, as the chipmaker continues to dominate the global AI infrastructure market.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Singtel commits S$1.2 billion ($937 million) to expand AI services and data centers<\/strong>, reporting a <strong>12% rise<\/strong> in underlying net profit for fiscal year 2026.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Retail sector analyst sentiment is mixed<\/strong>, with Target receiving a target hike to <strong>$155<\/strong>, while Lowe\u2019s and e.l.f. Beauty see significant target reductions.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Iran is reviewing &quot;US views&quot;<\/strong> received via mediators, marking a critical juncture in diplomatic efforts to de-escalate Middle East tensions.<\/li>\n<li><strong>US and China launch rival youth programs in Nepal<\/strong>, competing for influence through skill-building initiatives aimed at the country&#39;s Gen Z population.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Tech and AI Infrastructure Momentum<\/h2>\n<p><strong>NVIDIA<\/strong> (<a href=\"\/stock\/NVDA\">NVDA<\/a>) received a significant boost on Thursday as <strong>Jefferies<\/strong> raised its price target to <strong>$300<\/strong> from <strong>$275<\/strong>. Analysts cited the company&#39;s <em>unparalleled dominance<\/em> in the GPU market and robust cash flow as key drivers for the upgrade. This move follows a broader trend of bullishness on Wall Street ahead of the company\u2019s upcoming quarterly results.<\/p>\n<p>Singapore\u2019s <strong>Singtel<\/strong> (<a href=\"\/stock\/Z74\">Z74<\/a>) is also pivoting heavily toward artificial intelligence, announcing a <strong>S$1.2 billion ($937 million)<\/strong> investment in AI-ready data centers through its arm, <strong>Nxera<\/strong>. The telecom giant reported an underlying net profit of <strong>S$2.77 billion<\/strong> for the fiscal year ended March 2026, a <strong>12% year-over-year increase<\/strong>. Singtel is currently partnering with <strong>NVIDIA<\/strong> (<a href=\"\/stock\/NVDA\">NVDA<\/a>) to develop high-density infrastructure across Southeast Asia to meet surging enterprise demand.<\/p>\n<h2>Mixed Outlook for Retail and Consumer Goods<\/h2>\n<p>The retail sector is showing signs of divergence as analysts recalibrate expectations for the second half of 2026. <strong>D.A. Davidson<\/strong> increased its price target for <strong>Target<\/strong> (<a href=\"\/stock\/TGT\">TGT<\/a>) to <strong>$155<\/strong> from <strong>$140<\/strong>, suggesting <em>improving fundamentals<\/em> and better-than-expected resilience in consumer spending.<\/p>\n<p>In contrast, <strong>TD Cowen<\/strong> lowered its target for <strong>Lowe\u2019s<\/strong> (<a href=\"\/stock\/LOW\">LOW<\/a>) to <strong>$235<\/strong>, down from <strong>$280<\/strong>, reflecting caution over a <em>slower recovery<\/em> in the do-it-yourself (DIY) home improvement segment. Similarly, <strong>Canaccord Genuity<\/strong> reduced its target for <strong>e.l.f. Beauty<\/strong> (<a href=\"\/stock\/ELF\">ELF<\/a>) to <strong>$90<\/strong> from <strong>$100<\/strong>, pointing to <em>intensifying competition<\/em> and difficult year-over-year comparisons in the cosmetics industry.<\/p>\n<h2>Geopolitical Developments in Iran and Nepal<\/h2>\n<p>On the diplomatic front, the <strong>Iranian Foreign Ministry<\/strong> confirmed it has received and is currently reviewing the latest views from the <strong>United States<\/strong>. Spokesperson <strong>Esmaeil Baghaei<\/strong> noted that the exchange, mediated by <strong>Pakistan<\/strong>, is part of an ongoing effort to reach a formal end to regional hostilities. <em>Market participants are closely watching<\/em> these developments, as a potential deal could impact global energy price volatility.<\/p>\n<p>In South Asia, the <strong>US<\/strong> and <strong>China<\/strong> are intensifying their &quot;soft power&quot; competition by targeting Nepal\u2019s youth. The <strong>US Embassy<\/strong> has launched the <strong>&quot;Skill. Build. Launch.&quot;<\/strong> project for its 2026 Youth Council, while the <strong>Chinese Embassy<\/strong> introduced the <strong>&quot;Youth Pioneer Program&quot;<\/strong> (C.N.Y.P). Both initiatives aim to provide leadership and professional training to Gen Z, as both superpowers vie for long-term influence in the strategic region.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Key Takeaways Jefferies increases NVIDIA\u2019s price target to $300, up from $275, as the chipmaker continues to dominate the global [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":50383,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"rank_math_schema_Article":[],"rank_math_focus_keyword":[],"rank_math_description":[],"financial_data_references":[],"stock_symbols_mentioned":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[5012],"tags":[18913,633,1195,3703,3898,4048,4824,5296,5467,18912],"class_list":["post-62176","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-breaking-news","tag-diy","tag-nvda","tag-low","tag-ai","tag-tgt","tag-elf","tag-geopolitics","tag-analyst-ratings","tag-data-centers","tag-z74"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62176","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=62176"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62176\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/50383"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=62176"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=62176"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=62176"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}