Mizuho Ignites AI Networking Rally: Credo, Marvell, and Ciena Surge

The AI infrastructure investment boom is expanding from GPUs into networking and high-speed interconnect domains. Mizuho Securities' latest supply chain survey released positive signals, driving Credo Technology (CRDO-US) to soar 8.82% on Monday (17th), closing at $282.82 per share; Marvell Technology (MRVL-US) rose 5.54%, closing at $234.33 per share; Ciena (CIEN-US) also gained strongly by 3.83%, closing at $445.18 per share.

VR200 Supply Chain Heats Up: Optical Communication Demand Set to Expand

Mizuho Securities reported on August 16 that procurement momentum within the supply chain for NVIDIA's next-generation VR200 platform is accelerating, which could boost demand for Near-Package Optics (NPO), Co-Packaged Optics (CPO), and the Spectrum-X networking platform.

NPO and CPO technologies place optical engines close to switch or accelerator chips, helping reduce power consumption while increasing transmission bandwidth. As the deployment speed of VR200 server racks increases, the number of high-speed optical and switching components required per rack will also grow, directly benefiting interconnect chip suppliers such as Marvell and Credo.

Mizuho is optimistic about the 2027 earnings outlook for Dell (DELL-US), Credo, NVIDIA (NVDA-US), Broadcom (AVGO-US), and Lumentum (LITE-US), and forecasts that CoWoS advanced packaging capacity will grow by over 75% by then.

For Marvell, the expansion of CoWoS capacity could alleviate supply constraints on custom AI chips and high-speed interconnect products, further supporting data center business growth.

Operating data from these companies also support market optimism. Marvell's data center revenue reached $1.83 billion in Q1 of fiscal year 2027, up 27% year-on-year. Management has raised its full-year growth forecast for the high-speed interconnect business to over 70%.

Credo's revenue for fiscal year 2026 tripled to $1.3 billion. CEO Bill Brennan stated that fiscal year 2027 will be a pivotal turning point for the company's optical communications business.

Institutional Investors Front-Run AI Networking Stocks

13F filings released on August 14 revealed that as of end-June, several institutions had significantly increased their positions in AI networking and interconnect-related stocks.

Renaissance Technologies established a new position in Marvell, holding approximately 505,000 shares valued at around $151 million; Amazon (AMZN-US) also disclosed ownership of about 396,000 Marvell shares, worth approximately $118 million.

SRS Investment Management increased its stake in Credo to about 2.57 million shares, valued at nearly $700 million, accounting for 6.47% of its 13F portfolio.

Additionally, Atreides Management, led by Gavin Baker, holds positions in Credo, Ciena, and Astera Labs (ALAB-US), indicating the fund's bet that AI networking and high-speed interconnect supply chains will outperform GPU manufacturers.

Atreides holds approximately 689,000 shares of Ciena, valued at about $338 million, and around 1.129 million shares of Credo, valued at approximately $307 million. However, 13F filings only reflect fund holdings as of quarter-end and do not indicate whether positions were adjusted prior to the filing date.