$1,000 in Nvidia Stock 5 Years Ago? Here’s the Life-Changing ROI You Missed

Nvidia’s stock didn’t just climb—it blasted through the stratosphere. Miss the ride? Grab a tissue.

The rocket fuel: AI, gaming, and crypto mining

While Wall Street snoozed on silicon, Nvidia’s GPUs became the Swiss Army knives of tech—powering everything from ChatGPT to Ethereum rigs. The result? A shareholder payday that’d make Scrooge McDuck blush.

By the numbers: No, your calculator isn’t broken

That hypothetical $1k stake? It’s now worth more than some small-country GDPs. Exact figures redacted to prevent broker suicide hotline spikes.

The cold shower reality check

Of course, hindsight’s 20/20—just ask the ‘experts’ who recommended Sears stock in 2008. Next time someone says ‘this time it’s different,’ remember: even lottery tickets have better odds than most financial advice.

Image source: Getty Images.

Nvidia first went public in January 1999, but the past few years have been what have ascended the company into elite territory -- and it has made many investors a lot of money along the way. Had you invested $1,000 into Nvidia stock five years ago (using Aug. 14, 2020, as the start date), your investment WOULD be worth around $15,900, at the time of this writing.

NVDA data by YCharts

Why has Nvidia's stock become so popular?

I mentioned Nvidia as a GPU Maker because that has been the fuel behind its recent impressive business and stock performance. Nvidia has over a 90% market share of data center GPUs, which are critical to the AI ecosystem. Nvidia's GPUs allow companies to train, deploy, and scale AI models efficiently. Their capabilities have made Nvidia the go-to.

In Nvidia's fiscal first quarter (ended April 27), its revenue increased 69% year over year to $44.1 billion. Its data center revenue increased 73% year over year to $39.1 billion. With data centers accounting for almost 89% of Nvidia's total revenue, it's easy to see just how important the current AI boom has been for its business.

I wouldn't expect similar returns over the next five years for Nvidia, but the company holds a commanding position in the AI ecosystem.