Why NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) Has a Chip on Its Shoulder

However, Qualcomm may have underestimated what sent NVIDIA research and development expenses up 10% in the quarter. On Tuesday, NVIDIA revealed its newest chip, the Tegra 4i, which is the company’s first fully integrated 4G LTE mobile processor. And according to NVIDIA, it is faster yet half the size of its nearest competitor. That’s NVIDIA throwing shade at the Snapdragon S4, which is Qualcomm’s system-on-chip, and is the most widely used of its kind on the market today.

NVIDIA is talking a big game. But it’s not as if Qualcomm has been a diplomat, either. The company’s marketing department has made its own claims about how fast Snapdragon is in various modes and capacities. Although both companies are careful to not mention specific names, it clear in the spec language that they know who their rivals are. For now, it’s early in the game and Qualcomm still deserves its respect as the leader — but for how long? At the very least, NVIDIA is now making it interesting.

How can these shares still be down 16% over the past six months? Investors would be wise to wake up. This is a company that is pushing all the right buttons and (in my opinion) saying all the right things. For a semiconductor company, I appreciate that management now operates with a chip on its shoulder.

The article Why NVIDIA Has a Chip on Its Shoulder originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Richard Saintvilus.

Fool contributor Richard Saintvilus has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Intel and NVIDIA. The Motley Fool owns shares of Intel, International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM)., and Qualcomm.

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