If you're going purely based on history, the trends seen in the stock chart above would suggest that Nvidia stock will be headed higher after it reports earnings on Feb. 26. But smart investors know all too well that past performance shouldn't be used as your sole barometer.

When a stock price moves, so does the value of the company. In the case of Nvidia, the company's cratering share price has resulted in as much as $600 billion of lost market capitalization. On the surface, this looks horrific. However, as it often is the case with investments driven by overwhelming emotions, there's more than meets the eye.

Artificial intelligence (AI) propelled NVIDIA Corporation NVDA and Palantir Technologies Inc. PLTR to the top spots on Wall Street. NVIDIA led the Dow Jones Industrial Average last year, while Palantir topped the S&P 500.

Artificial intelligence (AI), especially the rise of generative AI, has provided a massive tailwind for Nvidia in recent years. The stock has delivered a return of nearly 21x since early 2020 and is up more than 80% during the last 12 months.

A year ago, a screen of the S&P 500 placed Nvidia Corp. at the top of the list of companies that were expected to show the most rapid increases in revenue from 2023 through 2025. Now it is time to run the screen again,