Broadcom Stock After the Bell: AVGO Pulls Back From Highs Even as Wall Street Lifts AI-Driven Price Targets

Broadcom stock (NASDAQ: AVGO) cooled off on Monday, December 1, 2025, giving back part of its recent AI-fueled rally even as major Wall Street firms raised their price targets and doubled down on the long-term story.

After a torrid run that pushed AVGO to fresh 52‑week highs near $403 last week, shares ended Monday’s regular session around $386, roughly 4% below Friday’s close of $402.96 and a short step down from record territory. ^[1]

So what happened to Broadcom stock after the closing bell on December 1, and how are analysts now framing the AI and VMware story into 2026?

Broadcom stock today: from record highs to a healthy pullback

Coming into Monday, Broadcom had been on a remarkable tear:

52‑week range: about $138 to $403 per share. ^[2]
Market cap: roughly $1.8–1.9 trillion, putting AVGO firmly in mega‑cap territory. ^[3]
12‑month performance: up around 150% over the past year, driven by AI semiconductor demand and the VMware acquisition. TS2 Tech+1

On Monday, December 1:

AVGO opened just under $395, traded between roughly $385 and $395, and closed near $386, down a bit over 4% versus Friday. ^[4]
Intraday, the stock was at one point down about 2.7% near $392, according to AInvest, before sliding further into the close. ^[5]

In other words, this was a sharp but not catastrophic pullback after a nearly vertical move in November. As of Monday night, there were no new company press releases from Broadcom and no earnings surprises to explain the drop; the selling looks mostly like profit‑taking and broader AI‑chip volatility, not a thesis‑breaking headline. ^[6]

Extended-hours trading data for December 1 is thin and fragmented, but there’s no clear evidence of a dramatic after-hours reversal; the main story is still the regular-session fade from recent highs, not a sudden post‑close shock.

Why Wall Street is raising AVGO targets anyway

Ironically, Monday’s selloff came on the same day several analysts made AVGO’s bull case louder, not quieter.

Fresh price-target hikes on December 1

Bank of America (BofA) lifted its Broadcom price target from $400 to $460 while reiterating a Buy rating, pointing to Broadcom’s growing role in Google’s TPU (Tensor Processing Unit) ecosystem and the potential cost advantages of Broadcom’s custom AI chips. ^[7]
Morgan Stanley raised its AVGO target from $409 to $443 and maintained an Overweight rating, arguing that AI infrastructure spending should “ramp materially” in 2026, benefiting both Nvidia and Broadcom. ^[8]
A TradingView roundup noted that UBS pushed its target as high as $472, adding to a cluster of targets in the $440–$470 range. ^[9]

Across the Street:

28 analysts tracked by StockAnalysis rate Broadcom a “Strong Buy”, with an average 12‑month target around $362.64 and a range from about $210 to $472. Interestingly, the average target now sits slightly below the current price, reflecting the fact that the stock has outrun older models even as new, higher targets trickle in. ^[10]

In short, today’s research flow was unambiguously bullish: price targets up, AI narrative reinforced, and no downgrade in sight.

The AI engine: Q3 results, Q4 guidance, and the $10 billion question

Underneath the stock’s volatility is an unusually clear growth engine: custom AI silicon plus networking, layered on top of a huge VMware software base.

Q3 FY2025: record revenue, AI up 63%

In Broadcom’s fiscal Q3 2025 (reported in early September):

Revenue hit roughly $16 billion, up 22% year over year. ^[11]
AI semiconductor revenue reached $5.2 billion, up 63% YoY, and has now grown strongly for ten straight quarters. ^[12]
Management guided Q4 revenue to about $17.4 billion (+24% YoY) with AI semiconductor revenue around $6.2 billion, up 66% YoY. ^[13]
The company’s order backlog climbed to an eye‑watering $110 billion, heavily influenced by big AI and infrastructure deals. ^[14]

That kind of growth is why Broadcom has been repeatedly described as a “verified AI powerhouse” in recent analysis, often mentioned alongside Nvidia in discussions about who really owns the AI infrastructure stack. ^[15]

The rumored $10 billion AI chip customer

An additional catalyst is a massive custom-chip order:

Broadcom has talked about a fourth large AI customer beyond its existing hyperscale clients, with AI chip orders that could exceed $10 billion and begin ramping meaningfully in 2026. ^[16]
A recent Barron’s piece flagged Anthropic as a likely candidate for that “mystery” customer, and Mizuho raised its AVGO target on the view that this new relationship could materially boost Broadcom’s long‑term AI revenue. ^[17]

Put together, the AI narrative that analysts are trading on today looks like this:

Double‑digit revenue growth in 2025, AI hardware revenue growing faster than 60%, a multi‑year order book, and potential upside from additional marquee customers.

Google TPUs vs Nvidia GPUs: why BofA is excited

Several of Monday’s upgrades lean heavily on how Broadcom’s custom chips fit into Google’s AI stack.

BofA’s new $460 target rests partly on the claim that Broadcom’s next‑gen Google TPUs could be up to 40% cheaper to run than comparable Nvidia solutions, once you factor in energy and total cost of ownership. ^[18]
TradingView and other analyst summaries note that a broader adoption of ASIC‑style accelerators (like TPUs) could redirect some spending away from GPUs, but still leave Nvidia and Broadcom as central winners of the AI build‑out. ^[19]

This is part of why Morgan Stanley and others see AVGO as a key beneficiary of a 2026 AI capex ramp: Broadcom is not just riding the trend, it’s co‑designing chips with the hyperscalers and selling the networking that glues their clusters together. ^[20]

VMware integration: engine of cash flow, magnet for controversy

Broadcom is no longer “just” a chip company. The acquisition of VMware turned nearly half of revenue into infrastructure software, which now carries eye‑popping margins — and plenty of drama.

Recent deep‑dive coverage of Broadcom’s VMware strategy highlights: TS2 Tech+1

A decisive shift away from perpetual licenses toward bundled, subscription‑style offerings centered on VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF).
Reports of steep price hikes for some customers — in certain European cases, NetworkWorld has cited effective increases that are multiples of previous bills — triggering migrations, third‑party support deals, and even legal challenges.
A European cloud‑provider association (CISPE) complaint arguing that Broadcom’s licensing changes could entrench VMware as a “gatekeeper” and limit competition.

At the same time:

VMware remains deeply embedded in many large enterprises, and full migrations can take years, giving Broadcom time to smooth rough edges.
The new bundles are reportedly delivering meaningful margin expansion, helping Broadcom sustain very high EBITDA margins (~67%) even as it ramps capital‑intensive AI hardware. ^[21]

For investors looking at AVGO after the bell, VMware is a double‑edged sword: an earnings and cash‑flow machine, but also a source of regulatory and customer‑relation risk that will feature prominently on the next earnings call. TS2 Tech+1

Dec. 11 earnings: the next major catalyst for AVGO

Broadcom’s next big event is already circled in red on Wall Street calendars:

Q4 and full‑year 2025 earnings are scheduled for Thursday, December 11, 2025, after the market close, followed by a conference call at 5:00 p.m. ET. ^[22]

Recent previews from analysts and financial media suggest that investors will be laser‑focused on a few themes: ^[23]

Can Broadcom deliver on Q4 guidance?
- Revenue around $17.4 billion and AI semiconductor revenue near $6.2 billion are the key benchmarks.
AI trajectory into 2026.
- Any color on the fourth AI mega‑customer, timing of that $10+ billion order, and how Google’s TPU roadmap evolves will be scrutinized.
VMware churn vs upsell.
- Are price hikes driving meaningful customer attrition, or are Broadcom’s bundled packages generating enough expansion to offset pressure?
Margins and cash flow.
- Street models assume mid‑60s EBITDA margins can be sustained; any sign of erosion from AI costs or VMware concessions would matter.
Accounting nuances.
- Several analysts have flagged how VMware integration costs, amortization, and restructuring charges flow through GAAP vs non‑GAAP results as a key detail to watch. ^[24]

A Motley Fool preview published this week framed December 11 as a “big day for Broadcom”, arguing that a strong print and upbeat 2026 commentary could justify the stock’s huge run — while a miss or softer outlook could trigger a more serious reset. ^[25]

Valuation check: how stretched is Broadcom now?

After Monday’s drop, AVGO still trades on very rich multiples by traditional standards:

Trailing P/E: around 100x. ^[26]
Forward P/E: in the mid‑40s, based on consensus 2026 estimates. ^[27]
P/E/G ratio: roughly 1.3–1.4, reflecting high growth but also a very full price. ^[28]

Different analytical lenses reach very different conclusions:

Street price targets: cluster in a broad band around the current price, with some high‑conviction bulls at $460–$480 and others more cautious in the mid‑$300s. ^[29]
Discounted-cash-flow (DCF) models: at least one GuruFocus-style model pegs intrinsic value in roughly the $160–$200 zone, far below today’s market price, highlighting how much future AI growth is being priced in. ^[30]
Free-cash-flow analysis: some recent work argues Broadcom’s surging FCF and high FCF margins could justify another 20–25% upside, assuming AI demand stays on its current track and VMware remains a durable cash engine. ^[31]

That tension — spectacular fundamentals vs stretched valuation — is exactly what fueled Monday’s volatility: once a stock has doubled or tripled in two years, even good news can become a reason for short‑term traders to lock in profits.

Key risks to watch from here

Looking beyond today’s after‑the‑bell snapshot, the main risks around AVGO are relatively clear in recent coverage and company commentary: ^[32]

AI spending slowdown or rotation.
If hyperscalers temper their AI capex plans or shift more design fully in-house, Broadcom’s AI growth could cool faster than the current narrative assumes.
Customer concentration.
A small handful of mega‑customers (Google and other cloud giants, plus one or two large AI labs) represent a large portion of AI revenue.
Competition.
Nvidia, AMD, Marvell and cloud vendors’ own custom chips are all vying for the same AI infrastructure dollars.
VMware backlash and regulation.
European regulators and cloud associations are already probing Broadcom’s licensing changes; more aggressive action could slow or reverse some of VMware’s profit gains.
Macro and trade policy.
Broadcom’s data‑center business is exposed to export controls and trade tensions, particularly involving China.

None of these showed up as concrete negatives today, but they hang over the valuation and help explain why some models still call the stock overvalued despite stellar growth.

Bottom line for AVGO after the closing bell

As of Monday night, Broadcom remains one of the market’s purest large‑cap plays on AI infrastructure, but the stock is now in a classic high‑expectations zone:

The business: delivering record revenue, rapidly growing AI sales, and huge cash flow, with another major AI customer and a massive backlog in the wings. ^[33]
The stock: still trading near all‑time highs after a 150% 12‑month run, even after Monday’s 3–4% pullback. TS2 Tech+2StockAnalysis+2
The narrative today: analysts are raising price targets and arguing the AI cycle has years to run, while valuation‑sensitive models warn that there’s little room for disappointment. ^[34]

For traders, Monday’s move looks like a routine shake‑out after a parabolic rally.
For long‑term investors, the real verdict on Broadcom stock is likely to be delivered on December 11, when earnings, 2026 commentary and fresh AI order details either validate today’s optimism — or remind the market what happens when a high‑multiple story stumbles.

Either way, AVGO is almost certain to stay at the center of the AI‑stock conversation into 2026.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice or a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Always do your own research or consult a licensed financial professional before making investment decisions.