New York, February 7, 2026, 09:08 EST — The market is closed.
Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) surged 8.2% to close at $208.44 on Friday, giving the AMD stock price a strong finish after chip shares rallied hard. Shares swung from $192.66 to $209.24 during the session, with roughly 54.5 million shares changing hands.
Why did it matter? Semiconductors have become the battleground in the escalating debate over just how much tech giants will shell out on AI hardware this year. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index—one of the sector’s main barometers—jumped 5.7%, snapping a three-day losing streak, after investors took in Amazon’s big spending update. That, combined with outlays from Microsoft, Alphabet and Meta, pushed projections for their total 2026 AI investments to roughly $600 billion. “The market looks like it was getting a bit overdone to the downside,” said Robert Pavlik, senior portfolio manager at Dakota Wealth. 1
Chip stocks led the charge, sending the Dow Jones Industrial Average past the 50,000 mark for the first time. Investors rotated out of a pure tech play, fueling a rally that reached across the board. “What’s driven it recently has been the broadening that we have seen in the market … across a number of areas, other than just the tech, AI trade,” said Chuck Carlson, chief executive at Horizon Investment Services. 2
On Friday, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang told CNBC that demand for AI chips was “going through the roof.” Traders jumped on the comment, after a string of tough sessions had hammered the sector. The same spending plans continue to rattle investors — costs are hitting now, just as doubts over future returns grow louder. 3
AMD shares bounced after a tough start to the week. The company had projected first-quarter revenue around $9.8 billion, give or take $300 million—a sequential drop of 5%. That guidance brought back talk of the old AMD-versus-Nvidia rivalry, and investors again wondered just how fast AMD can catch up in the premium AI chip segment. 4
The risk is still very much on the table. Bernstein’s Stacy Rasgon noted that short-term AI figures “are not really inflecting” and highlighted trouble spots: heavy customer concentration, plus rising competition as companies chase the largest contracts. Reuters, for its part, also flagged mounting pressure as tech heavyweights increasingly turn to custom AI chips. 5
U.S. markets stayed closed Saturday, leaving AMD traders eyeing Monday’s open. Was Friday’s move just a quick rebound, or is this the first sign of buyers coming back for chips? After volatility like that, the open can get sloppy.
Macro remains in play. The Bureau of Labor Statistics drops its January U.S. employment report on Feb. 11 at 8:30 a.m. ET—a moment that tends to move Treasury yields and, with them, tech valuations. 6
The chip industry’s focus shifts to Nvidia, whose earnings are due Feb. 25. The company’s conference call is scheduled for 2 p.m. PT. When it comes to AMD stock, investors are watching for clues on data-center demand and just how fast it translates into profits — that’s likely to drive what happens next. 7
