NEW YORK, July 26, 2026, 18:04 EDT — U.S. cash markets have ended trading.
- Shares of Advanced Micro Devices NASDAQ:AMD closed Friday at $521.95, up 5.3% over the week. The Nasdaq Composite declined 2.1%.
- Initial estimates show AMD’s proposed $5 billion investment in Anthropic accounts for 40.7% of the company’s liquidity as of March.
- AMD is scheduled to release second-quarter earnings on August 4, with revenue guidance set at a midpoint of $11.2 billion.
AMD finished a turbulent week outperforming the broader tech sector, maintaining its lead even after a 3.3% decline on Friday.
The week also highlighted a tougher dilemma for investors. AMD is attracting major AI clients, but these deals are more frequently tied to financial obligations.
AMD has committed to investing as much as $5 billion in Anthropic. The startup intends to utilize up to two gigawatts of MI450-based Helios systems supplied by AMD. Deployment of the initial gigawatt is expected to start in the first half of 2027.
Reuters stated that related server sales may total up to tens of billions of dollars. AMD will base its investment on the achievement of deployment targets.
The pledge represents a significant portion of AMD’s resources. As of March 28, the company reported $12.3 billion in cash, equivalents and short-term investments.
Initial estimates indicate the Anthropic cap amounts to 40.7% of that available liquidity. This figure is also roughly 1.7 times greater than AMD’s operating cash flow for the first quarter.
The balance-sheet exposure existed before Anthropic. AMD reported a maximum gross exposure of $4.1 billion linked to partner data-centre lease guarantees. Certain guarantees have durations extending to 15 years.
Including the Anthropic cap, the potential maximum totals $9.1 billion, amounting to 74% of March’s liquidity. This figure does not represent a projected cash outflow. The investment depends on future milestones, and guarantee exposure diminishes as lease payments occur.
| Week ended July 24 | July 24 close | Weekly move |
|---|---|---|
| Advanced Micro Devices NASDAQ:AMD | $521.95 | up 5.3% |
| Nvidia NASDAQ:NVDA | $206.84 | rose 2.0% |
| Intel NASDAQ:INTC | $92.32 | fell 2.9% |
| Nasdaq Composite | 24,975.82 | dropped 2.1% |
These stock returns are based on initial calculations from closing prices on July 17 and July 24.
However, AMD gave back some of its earlier advances, ending Friday 5.5% lower than its $552.33 close on Wednesday. The drop came as worries about AI-related expenditures resurfaced and the semiconductor index declined by about 4.3% during Friday’s session.
eMarketer analyst Jacob Bourne said following the Anthropic news that, “Each win deepens AMD’s credibility as the number-two to Nvidia.” Reuters
AMD is offering a more comprehensive system as well. Helios integrates 72 MI455X accelerators, 18 EPYC processors, networking, and ROCm software. According to AMD, this setup provides as much as 30% higher inference tokens per dollar compared to a top rival system. The figure is based on internal company benchmarks.
Chief Executive Lisa Su stated that achieving AI’s possibilities will need “the entire industry working together.” This strategy reduces customers’ reliance on a single chip maker. At the same time, it means AMD takes on a greater share of project risk. Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.
AMD is not set to release earnings this week. Chip market sentiment could instead be influenced by capital spending updates from Microsoft NASDAQ:MSFT, Meta Platforms NASDAQ:META and Amazon.com NASDAQ:AMZN. These three companies are all due to report their results in the next week.
AMD is set to release its results on August 4, following the market close. The company has guided for second-quarter revenue of $11.2 billion, with a possible variation of $300 million either way. The middle of that range points to a 46% increase compared to last year. Non-GAAP gross margin is expected to be around 56%.
Risks: Anthropic implementations are set to begin next year, still contingent on key milestones. Restrictions on exports, limited supply, software performance, and customer funding have the potential to push back revenue or reduce returns.
The August report needs to reveal more than just demand. Investors will be seeking signs that significant orders are being turned into cash more quickly than AMD’s financial obligations are growing.
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