synopsis

Analysts at Summit Insights noted that increased competition in the custom AI ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit) market could result in additional pressure on gross margins.

Shares of Marvell Technology Inc. (MRVL) plunged nearly 15% during the after-market session on Wednesday, even as the company’s fourth-quarter results came marginally ahead of expectations.

Marvell reported earnings per share (EPS) of $0.60 in Q4, slightly higher than the expected $0.59. The semiconductor company’s revenue came in at $1.82 billion, edging past the estimated $1.80 billion.

It has beaten revenue and earnings expectations in all the past four quarters.

For the fiscal year 2025, Marvell’s EPS stood at $1.57 while revenue came in at $5.77 billion.

Marvell said the revenue surge was the data center business – the segment witnessed a growth of 78% year-on-year in Q4.

“Our custom AI silicon programs have now entered volume production, and we continue to see strong growth from our interconnect products. Marvell has secured multiple new design wins, including several custom silicon programs that will fuel future growth,” said Marvell CEO Matt Murphy.

For Q1, Marvell guided for an EPS between $0.56 and $0.66, while revenue is expected to be $1.875 billion, plus or minus 5%.

However, analysts at Summit Insights noted that increased competition in the custom AI ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit) market could result in additional pressure on gross margins. The brokerage added that Marvell’s expectations are too high and that it lacks the financial leverage to achieve them.

Summit Insight downgraded the Marvell stock to ‘Hold’ from ‘Buy.’

However, retail sentiment on Stocktwits remained highly optimistic, soaring to enter the ‘extremely bullish’ (94/100) territory after the results.

MRVL sentiment and message volume March 5, 2025, as of 8 pm ET | Source: Stocktwits

Message volume witnessed a 1,800% surge on the platform, showing considerable interest among retail investors. At the time of writing, the stock was also among the top trending ones on Stocktwits.

One user highlighted that the stock could surge higher following the Q4 results and guidance for Q1.

Marvell’s stock has surged 29% in the past six months, but its one-year performance is relatively less impressive, with gains of over 14%.

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