New York, Feb 4, 2026, 05:20 EST — Premarket
- Adobe shares slipped 0.6% in premarket trading, following a 7.3% decline in the previous session
- Piper Sandler downgraded its rating to neutral and sharply lowered its price target
- Investors are closely tracking if the software selloff will extend and what Adobe reveals in its upcoming earnings report
Adobe (ADBE) slipped 0.6% to $270.20 in Wednesday’s premarket, following a 7.3% drop to $271.93 in the previous session.
The stock tumbled as software and data shares faced broad selling pressure following AI developer Anthropic’s Friday rollout of plug-ins for its Claude Cowork agent, designed to automate tasks in legal, sales, marketing, and data analysis. “Sometimes the market just shoots first and asks questions later,” said Mike Archibald, a portfolio manager at AGF Investments. Reuters
Wall Street took a steep dive Tuesday as investors fretted over AI ramping up competition and squeezing margins for software firms, just days before Alphabet and Amazon report earnings. “We’re seeing a lot of software companies across the spectrum get hit,” said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at B. Riley Wealth. John Campbell of Allspring warned some segments of the AI trade are “priced for perfection.” Reuters
Piper Sandler lowered its rating on Adobe from Overweight to Neutral and slashed the price target from $470 to $330 as the analyst stepped in to cover the stock. The firm pointed to “seat-compression” — where customers buy fewer software licenses — and “vibe coding” narratives as pressures on the valuation multiple. They emphasized this isn’t a forecast for Q4 earnings. TipRanks
Global markets found some footing early Wednesday, with U.S. futures holding steady following the previous day’s decline. IG chief markets strategist Chris Beauchamp commented on the strain facing software business models, saying Anthropic was “parking its tanks on their lawn.” Reuters
Still, the downside scenario isn’t undisputed. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang dismissed the notion that AI will replace software tools as “illogical,” saying AI systems will build on existing tools instead of starting from zero. Reuters
Off the market radar, Adobe backtracked on Adobe Animate this week, opting to put it into maintenance mode rather than scrap it, following user pushback. The company confirmed it has “no plans to discontinue” the software and will continue releasing security patches and bug fixes. Meanwhile, community team member Mike Chambers admitted the prior email “did not meet our standards.” The Verge
That said, bulls face the risk that Tuesday’s drop sparks a broader valuation reset in enterprise software. Analysts and investors are reevaluating how fast AI might cut jobs and slash demand for per-user subscriptions.
Adobe faces a key moment with its fiscal 2026 first-quarter earnings call set for Thursday, March 12, at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time. Investors will zero in on demand signals and the revenue impact from its AI features.
