The chipmaker’s premium valuation melts away when you look at what analysts expect it to earn, but that discount depends entirely on the growth arriving.

The engine behind NVIDIA (NVDA)’s growth is the accelerating build-out of what management calls “AI factories,” the data centers powering a new era of computing. That story has sent the stock soaring, leaving many investors looking at the price tag with a healthy dose of skepticism. On this year’s expected earnings, NVDA stock trades at a multiple of about 22.6 times, a premium that stops many conversations cold.

But that is not the price a patient investor is really paying.

The Discount That Patience Buys You

Look ahead to the earnings analysts expect by…