New York, February 1, 2026, 09:57 EST — The market has closed.
- Broadcom closed Friday with a small gain after Wolfe Research upgraded the stock, citing strong demand for Alphabet TPUs.
- Attention has shifted back to VMware-related channel changes following a report highlighting partner non-renewals and a looming March 31 deal cutoff.
Broadcom (AVGO.O) closed Friday just 0.2% higher at $331.30 following an upgrade from Wolfe Research’s Chris Caso, who raised the stock to a buy rating with a $400 target. Caso highlighted the rising importance of TPUs—Alphabet’s custom AI chips—saying, “We can no longer ignore the growth and strength” of the technology. (TipRanks)
This matters now as investors scramble to forecast the next wave of AI hardware spending, constantly shifting their views. Broadcom is right in the thick of it — tied closely to the biggest cloud players and the vendors that hold their data centers together.
TPUs, short for tensor processing units, are Alphabet’s own chips designed specifically for AI tasks. Wolfe contends they’re expanding past just internal applications, potentially shifting some demand away from Nvidia’s graphics cards and toward these specialized chips.
The upgrade also hinges on scale. Wolfe pointed to checks indicating annual TPU shipments might hit roughly 7 million units by 2028, boosting its long-term forecast for Broadcom’s AI-related revenue.
Broadcom managed to rise despite a broadly weaker market on Friday. The S&P 500 slipped 0.43%, with Nvidia down 0.72% and Texas Instruments off 0.92%. (MarketWatch)
The close seemed calm, but action was anything but. Broadcom swung from $322.77 up to $338.17 during the day, exchanging roughly 28 million shares—a hefty volume for a stock that ended nearly unchanged.
Since the market is closed, the key question now is whether Monday’s New York open will see follow-through. Should the stock slip quickly, Friday’s gains might just be headline-driven noise. But if it holds steady, momentum traders are likely to jump in.
On the software front, Broadcom is still overhauling VMware’s channel. According to The Register, Broadcom informed some VMware Cloud Service Provider partners that contracts won’t be renewed after Jan. 26, pushing them to close any open deals by March 31. Kristian Liivak, CTO and founder of WaveCom AS, described Broadcom as a “bulldozer,” while a spokesperson said the company is focusing “deeper” on its committed partners. (The Register)
Investors care about that debate since VMware is supposed to provide a more stable cash flow as semiconductors slow down. But if customer transitions stumble or European regulators step up scrutiny, the software cushion could shrink.
After Monday’s open, traders will zero in on signs that Broadcom’s custom AI pipeline is expanding — whether through additional programs, increased volume, or new network buildouts. A fresh update from a hyperscale client about in-house chips could quickly jolt the stock.
Macro data might yet steer the week, altering rate expectations that ripple through tech valuations. On Friday, Feb. 6 at 8:30 a.m. ET, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics is set to publish the January Employment Situation report. (Bls)
