New York, Jan 3, 2026, 09:20 ET — Market closed
- Nvidia shares last closed up 1.2% at $188.85 as U.S. chipmakers led a broad market rebound.
- A U.S. SEC filing showed Nvidia officer Donald Robertson filed to sell up to 80,000 shares under a prearranged trading plan.
- Focus turns to Nvidia’s CES appearance on Jan. 5 and key U.S. jobs and inflation data next week.
Nvidia shares ended Friday up 1.2% at $188.85, outperforming the broader market as semiconductors led a rebound in the first trading session of 2026.
That move matters because Nvidia has become a bellwether for “AI plays” — stocks tied to artificial intelligence spending — after a choppy year-end left investors wary of stretched valuations. Chipmakers lifted the Philadelphia SE Semiconductor index, a benchmark for major U.S. chip stocks, which rose 4% on Friday. Reuters
The early bounce also comes as traders look for a new catalyst to set the tone for risk assets in January, with macro data and corporate earnings season close at hand. Strategists have warned that high valuations leave markets vulnerable to surprises on rates and growth.
Joe Mazzola, head of trading & derivatives strategist at Charles Schwab, described the current mood as a “buy the dip, sell the rip” mentality, while cautioning investors are paying closer attention to the prices attached to AI-linked stocks. Reuters
A key test arrives next week with U.S. employment data due Jan. 9 and the consumer price index due Jan. 13, Reuters reported. A Reuters poll cited in that report showed economists expect payrolls to rise by 55,000 in December.
Company-specific signals also landed on Friday. A filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission showed Nvidia officer Donald Robertson filed a Form 144 — a notice of a proposed sale of securities — for up to 80,000 shares, valued at about $14.9 million.
The filing said the sales were tied to a Rule 10b5-1 plan, which is a prearranged program that can allow insiders to sell shares at set intervals without making decisions based on day-to-day news. Form 144 filings can precede sales but do not guarantee they will occur.
Nvidia’s advance came alongside strength across the chip group, which helped buoy the Dow and offset weakness in some mega-cap technology names, Reuters reported. Traders often treat Nvidia’s moves as a read-through for sentiment toward AI infrastructure spending.
Before Monday’s open, attention shifts to Las Vegas. Nvidia is scheduled to host a CES press conference on Jan. 5, according to the CES schedule, as the company ramps up its presence at the show.
Investors will be listening for any updates that clarify demand trends and product timing across Nvidia’s businesses, including data-center hardware and its broader ecosystem of software and tools. Any new detail on customer spending plans can move the stock quickly because Nvidia’s earnings have become a proxy for the pace of AI buildouts.
The next major scheduled catalyst is earnings. Nvidia’s investor calendar lists its fourth-quarter fiscal 2026 financial results for Feb. 25.
Into the next session, traders will also be watching near-term price levels after Friday’s range. Nvidia traded between $188.28 and $192.86, leaving the $190 area in focus and $200 as the next round-number test if momentum holds.
