NEW YORK, Feb 26, 2026, 12:59 ET — Regular session in progress.
- Nvidia shares slid roughly 4%. The drop came even as the company delivered record quarterly revenue and projected stronger sales ahead.
- Chip stocks slipped, dragging on the Nasdaq, with investors zeroing in on valuations and the outlook for cash returns.
- Eyes turn to Friday’s producer-price figures, with the next set of inflation data also on traders’ radar for hints about rates.
Nvidia (NVDA) slid nearly 4% to $187.60 on Thursday, with investors digesting robust earnings but skeptical about whether the AI chip giant plans to ramp up shareholder payouts. The selloff pulled down Broadcom and Advanced Micro Devices as well. With Thursday’s move, Nvidia slipped beneath both its 50- and 100-day moving averages—levels traders tend to flag for potential support. “The competitive picture is shifting,” said eMarketer analyst Jacob Bourne. Reuters
The tech pullback weighed on the broader indexes. Nasdaq dropped 1.5% by late morning, while the S&P 500 slipped 0.87%. The Philadelphia SE Semiconductor Index, coming off a record just the day before, tumbled 3.4%. “The main issue: valuations,” said Jake Johnston, portfolio manager at Advisors Asset Management. He called some tech stocks “priced for perfection.” Reuters
Nvidia’s moves are crucial—these days, the stock basically signals where the AI spending cycle stands. If shares can’t get traction after a “beat and raise,” that weakness often drags down the rest of the AI-linked names, and it happens quickly.
Nvidia reported fourth-quarter revenue up 73% from a year ago, hitting $68.1 billion. Data-center sales accounted for $62.3 billion of that total. For the first quarter, the company is guiding to $78.0 billion in revenue, give or take 2%, and isn’t counting on any data-center compute income from China. Nvidia returned $41.1 billion to shareholders in fiscal 2026, leaving $58.5 billion available on its buyback plan. A $0.01 dividend goes out April 1 to shareholders recorded by March 11. CEO Jensen Huang called it: “the agentic AI inflection point has arrived.” NVIDIA Newsroom
Still, shares showed little reaction in Wednesday’s after-hours action, hinting at a cooler mood heading into Thursday. UBS’s Tim Arcuri pressed on the call about whether Nvidia might hand back more of the near-$100 billion in cash projected for this year, but CFO Colette Kress signaled the company intends to keep funneling funds into AI. Nvidia also said it has chip supply and manufacturing lined up well past the next few quarters, yet flagged possible pressure on its gaming segment. The warning comes as Meta and other tech giants outline capital expenditures of at least $630 billion for 2026, largely aimed at data centers and processors.
Some analysts held onto their bullish view following the results. D.A. Davidson highlighted an earnings beat and persistent AI-compute demand, according to Barron’s, while KeyBanc noted robust data-center growth; both firms maintained price targets north of $250.
But the risk comes into focus fast: Uneven cloud spending, customers pushing further into their own chip designs, or export curbs that hold back China — any of these could slow Nvidia’s growth more abruptly than a market betting on near-flawless execution is ready for.
Traders have their eyes on Friday’s Producer Price Index for January, set for release at 8:30 a.m. ET, scanning for a hint on inflation or rates.
The Federal Reserve’s go-to inflation measure, the PCE price index, drops March 13, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis said. Should the number run hot, high-multiple tech stocks like Nvidia and its chip rivals could take a hit.
