Shares of Nebius Group NV (NASDAQ:NBIS) jumped 13.90% on Tuesday after Citron Research highlighted the company's potential to become the next artificial intelligence sensation on Wall Street, citing its deep ties with NVIDIA Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) and perceived undervaluation compared to competitor CoreWeave.

What Happened: The surge followed Monday's announcement of a $700 million private placement financing round, backed by Nvidia, Accel, and accounts managed by Orbis Investments. The deal involves issuing 33,333,334 Class A shares at $21 each, representing a 3% premium over the volume-weighted average price since Nasdaq trading resumed.

Citron Research, through its X social media account, projected a potential $60 share price for Nebius, based on what it called "napkin math" assuming a 50% discount to CoreWeave's multiple. The research firm said, "Citron pounding the table that Nebius is poised to be the next AI Wall Street darling," emphasizing CEO Arkady Volozh's credentials and Nvidia's decade-long relationship with the company.

Volozh, a Russian technology entrepreneur and billionaire known for his expertise in computer science, expressed confidence in the company's direction. "The foundation of our business is our expertise in building advanced technology infrastructure," he stated, highlighting plans to expand AI infrastructure across two continents.

Citron pounding the table that $NBIS is poised to be the next AI Wall Street darling. A sleeper with no analyst coverage yet, the market hasn't caught on to its massive potential—or its undervaluation vs. CoreWeave.   If it trades at a 50% discount to Coreweave multiple that puts...

— Citron Research (@CitronResearch) December 3, 2024

Why It Matters: The backing from Nvidia carries particular weight given the chip giant's dominance in AI computing. Citron noted that Nvidia's investment "was not out of the blue," pointing to their long-standing relationship and timing with complete divestiture.

Citron's endorsement is notable given the firm's track record of market-moving calls. Its founder, Andrew Left, gained prominence for his contrarian positions, including his famous bearish stance on GameStop Corp (NYSE:GME) in 2021 and recent skepticism about MicroStrategy Inc's (NASDAQ:MSTR) Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) driven rally.

The stock continued its upward momentum in after-hours trading, gaining an additional 2.97%. With no current analyst coverage, Citron suggests the market has yet to fully recognize Nebius's potential in the rapidly expanding AI infrastructure space.

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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.