Daily Briefing – May 21: Nvidia confirms the AI boom, AMD ramps 2nm Venice, Walmart tests the consumer, while fresh healthcare and tech headlines hit GH, BAYRY, TGT, CAVA, ADI, IBRX, INM, CRWD, LAES and CODX

The May 21 setup is more constructive than yesterday, but still not a clean all-clear. Nvidia delivered another record AI quarter, with revenue surging 85% year over year to $81.6 billion and next-quarter revenue guidance around $91 billion, keeping the AI infrastructure trade alive even as investors debate whether expectations are now too high. AMD added a fresh semiconductor catalyst by announcing production ramp of its next-generation EPYC “Venice” processor on TSMC’s 2nm process and more than $10 billion of Taiwan ecosystem investments tied to AI infrastructure. Walmart reports before the U.S. open and becomes the main consumer-health test of the morning, while Target’s Q1 beat and raised sales outlook remain in focus after a mixed stock reaction. Healthcare headlines are also active: Guardant Health received FDA approval for an expanded Guardant360 Liquid CDx panel, Bayer said the FDA accepted and granted priority review to a supplemental application for Kerendia in adults with type 1 diabetes and chronic kidney disease, ImmunityBio now has a January 6, 2027 PDUFA date for its ANKTIVA supplemental BLA, and InMed’s merger reset with Mentari keeps migraine prevention on the small-cap biotech radar. The tape is still being filtered through yields, oil, AI concentration and financing risk, but the morning has more real company-level catalysts than a simple macro-only session.

• NVDA— Nvidia reported record Q1 FY27 revenue of $81.6 billion, up 85% year over year, guided next-quarter revenue to roughly $91 billion and added another $80 billion to buybacksAI Semis
• AMD— AMD announced production ramp of its 6th Gen EPYC “Venice” CPUs on TSMC 2nm technology and more than $10 billion of Taiwan ecosystem investments tied to AI infrastructureAI Chips
• WMT— Walmart reports Q1 FY27 before the open, making it the main real-time consumer read-through for traffic, grocery demand, tariffs, margins and lower-income spendingConsumer
• TGT— Target reported better-than-expected Q1 results, positive comparable-sales momentum and a raised full-year sales outlook, but the stock reaction stayed cautiousRetail
• GH— Guardant Health rallied after FDA approval for the expanded Guardant360 Liquid CDx panel, described as the largest FDA-approved liquid biopsy panel with a much broader genomic footprintFDA
• BAYRY / BAYZF— Bayer said the FDA accepted and granted priority review to Kerendia’s supplemental application for adults with type 1 diabetes and chronic kidney diseaseFDA
• IBRX— ImmunityBio remains in focus after FDA acceptance of the ANKTIVA supplemental BLA in BCG-unresponsive NMIBC with papillary disease and a January 6, 2027 PDUFA datePDUFA
• INM— InMed’s all-stock merger with Mentari keeps the ticker active as the story shifts toward migraine prevention and a privately financed development platformBiotech M&A
• CAVA— CAVA’s strong Q1, same-restaurant sales growth and raised guidance remain a high-quality restaurant read-through, though valuation sensitivity still matters in this tapeEarnings
• ADI— Analog Devices’ $1.5 billion all-cash deal for Empower Semiconductor keeps AI power delivery, voltage regulation and data-center efficiency in focusAI Power
• LAES / WKEY— SEALSQ and WISeKey remain speculative AI/quantum-security watch names after launching WISeRobot.ch and a post-quantum robotics roadmapQuantum AI

• AI got confirmation— Nvidia’s numbers keep the AI infrastructure story intact, but the stock reaction matters because expectations are already extremely highAI
• Semis broaden beyond GPUs— AMD’s Venice 2nm ramp reinforces that AI infrastructure is also about CPUs, advanced nodes, packaging, power density and server architectureSemis
• Walmart is the consumer test— After Target and CAVA, Walmart’s Q1 call can reset expectations for grocery, general merchandise, tariffs, price sensitivity and household resilienceRetail
• Yields still matter— Even with better company news, high-multiple growth, biotech and speculative AI remain vulnerable if Treasury yields start pushing higher againRates
• Oil has cooled but is not gone— Lower crude helped sentiment yesterday, but inflation sensitivity remains a key macro filter for airlines, consumers, margins and the Fed narrativeOil
• Diagnostics caught a real FDA headline— GH shows that liquid biopsy and precision oncology can still produce clean single-stock catalysts when the FDA news is materialHealthcare
• Cardio-renal stays active— Bayer’s Kerendia priority-review update adds a large-pharma FDA event in type 1 diabetes and chronic kidney disease, with read-throughs for renal/cardiometabolic pipelinesPharma
• Small biotech is still binary— IBRX and INM show two very different setups: mapped FDA label-expansion review versus public-market reset through merger and private financingBiotech
• Financing risk remains part of the tape— Recent CODX, VIAV, AKAM and SITM capital actions remind traders that offerings and convertibles can quickly override operating headlinesCapital