Dell Technologies (DELL) shares surged 25% on Friday to hit a record high of $118.8, following an upbeat annual forecast indicating the tech equipment maker is benefiting greatly from the artificial intelligence (AI) boom.

The stock’s meteoric rise added $17.7 billion to Dell’s market valuation and marked its best single-day performance ever. 

Enterprise technology vendors have been benefiting from the increasing use of AI.

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• Dell stock hits record high, gains $17.7B in value after strong AI server sales.

• Orders for Dell’s AI-optimized PowerEdge servers jump 40% amid enterprise AI boom.

• Wall Street raised Dell’s price targets, and the stock saw the best single-day performance ever.

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Dell Rides the AI Wave to New Record High as Sales Soars

 NVIDIA’s recent rally is an example of this trend.

“We have positioned ourselves well in AI,” said Dell COO Jeff Clarke on Thursday, noting surging customer demand for PCs and servers optimized for AI capabilities. 

Orders for Dell’s flagship AI-powered PowerEdge XE9680 servers jumped 40% sequentially in Q4, highlighting the shift.

After the bullish results, at least nine Wall Street analysts raised their Dell price targets. 

Over three-fourths recommend buying the stock, with a median target of $113.

Analysts at Bernstein also noted Dell’s commentary on the overall PC market rebound being pushed to H2 2024 mirrored recent remarks by rival HP (HPQ).

While HP sales declined for the seventh quarter, Dell managed to fare better as worldwide computer shipments sharply dropped over the past two years. 

Dell’s revenue fell less than expected in Q4, and its $91 billion to $95 billion fiscal 2025 guidance widely topped consensus estimates of $92.07 billion.

Dell’s ability to capitalize on booming enterprise AI adoption with optimized servers and PCs drove record stock gains. 

With over 31 million shares trading Friday, more than seven times the average volume, Wall Street is clearly bullish on the company’s positioning in this high-growth arena.