It's been a topsy-turvy year for Super Micro Computer ( SMCI 0.53%). Once seen as the next big artificial intelligence (AI) stock, it has come crashing down to reality in recent months due to concerns about the reliability of its numbers and accounting controls.

Super Micro Computer stock was rising early Thursday and looking to start the new year in positive territory after a 2024 that brought plenty of challenges for the artificial intelligence server maker.

Super Micro Computer is currently trading just around the $32 mark. Its one-year returns stand at a paltry 10%, nothing to write home about. Yet the stock has been in the news throughout the year, for both good and bad reasons.

Dividend stocks can be your best friend in retirement -- especially when their payouts allow you to cover your living expenses without selling shares. The company has grown its earnings at a 4.4% annualized pace over the past five years, and analysts estimate it will grow them by 3.5% annually over the next three to five years.