AMD stock pops on Q1 earnings but HSBC recommends caution

Advanced Micro Devices NASDAQ:AMD is pushing higher in extended hours after delivering a comprehensive “beat and raise” that underscores its growing dominance in the AI infrastructure trade.

In Q1, the chipmaker earned $1.37 on a per-share basis and generated $10.25 billion in revenue – handily beating both Wall Street estimates and the last year’s figures.

AMD stock currently sits firmly above its major moving averages (MAs), with an RSI in the early 70s signaling intense buying pressure.

Including the post-earnings run, Advanced Micro Devices Inc is up more than 90% versus its price at the start of April.

Data center dominance drives AMD stock higher

AMD’s strong Q1 earnings are primarily attributed to its successful pivot toward becoming an AI-first powerhouse.

The company’s data center segment saw a remarkable 57% year-over-year increase to $5.8 billion, driven by hyperscalers' aggressive adoption of its Instinct GPUs and EPYC CPUs.

AMD’s first-quarter release justifies a long-term investment because it confirms the Nasdaq-listed firm is capturing the "agentic AI" renaissance where high-density compute is king.

With net income nearly doubling to $1.38 billion, Advanced Micro Devices Inc is proving it can maintain premium margins even while scaling supply chains amidst global geopolitical volatility.

The multinational has pending authorization to repurchase over $8 billion worth of its stock, which makes AMD shares even more attractive to own in 2026.

HSBC downgrades AMD shares to ‘neutral’

Despite blockbuster Q1 results and impressive future guidance, HSBC’s senior analyst Frank Lee recommends caution on AMD stock.

On May 5^th, Lee downgraded the chipmaker to “neutral” – citing valuation concerns and insatiable expectations already baked into its share price.

While Advanced Micro Devices is executing flawlessly, he pointed to ongoing capacity constraints in advanced packaging and manufacturing, which may cap the firm’s near-term upside.  

By moving to the sidelines, HSBC is signaling that the easy money has been made, questioning whether AMD can sustain its 16x compute density breakthroughs without facing notable margin pressure from rising supply chain costs in the Middle East.

How to play AMD after Q1 earnings?

Ultimately, AMD's broader growth story depends mostly on the firm’s upcoming hardware pipeline and elite tier of customers.

Later this year, the company will ship Helios, its first full rack-scale AI system designed to compete directly with Nvidia’s high-end Grace Blackwell and Vera Rubin architectures.

The market’s confidence is bolstered by the fact that OpenAI and Meta have already signed on as flagship customers for Helios, securing AMD’s status as a critical sovereign provider of compute.

These deals prove that the largest spenders in tech are desperate for a viable second option to break the Nvidia monopoly.

All in all, as Advanced Micro Devices and Intel collaborate on new x86 AI Compute Extensions, AMD is positioning itself at the heart of the next decade of enterprise intelligence.