Here’s Why Astera Labs (ALAB) Jumped Around 8% on New Year

Astera Labs, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALAB) is one of the Best Unstoppable Growth Stocks to Buy Right Now. Astera Labs, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALAB) has jumped more than 7.9% since the new year eve till market close on Friday, January 2, 2026. The jump reflects the renewed investor confidence in the semiconductor space, as the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index also rose 4% during the same time.

Earlier on December 30, Stacy Rasgon of Bernstein Research appeared on a CNBC Television interview and discussed the sustainability of the chips trade in 2026.

Rasgon noted that in 2025, he advised investors to look for high-quality AI names as they were performing well. He sees the AI theme getting even stronger in 2026, driven by optimistic estimates by tech companies, which suggest significant room for growth. Rasgon added that the valuation of most of the semiconductor stocks is not inflated, considering the growth potential. Moreover, he noted that the AI theme has continued to perform well despite the valuation concerns throughout 2025, suggesting that valuation was never an actual concern.

That said, Wall Street maintains a positive outlook on Astera Labs, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALAB) with analysts’ 12-month price target reflecting more than 16.9% upside from the current level. On December 16, Vivek Arya from Bank of America reiterated a Hold rating on the stock and lowered the price target from $210 to $170. Earlier, on December 9, H.C. Wainwright raised the firm’s price target from $175 to $195 and maintained a Buy rating on the stock.

Analysts at H.C. Wainwright expect the company to continue its growth trajectory driven by Scorpio X revenue throughout 2026. The firm anticipates the company to introduce larger switches in the second half of 2026 to further boost the growth. Looking ahead, in 2027, H.C. Wainwright sees the growth to be driven by the NVLink Fusion product, which has the potential to improve the company’s revenue per AI accelerator chip.

Astera Labs Inc. (NASDAQ:ALAB) designs, manufactures, and sells semiconductor-based connectivity solutions for cloud and AI infrastructure.

While we acknowledge the potential of ALAB to grow, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than ALAB and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.

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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.