New York, Jan 28, 2026, 09:58 (EST) — Regular session
- Broadcom shares were up 0.1% early Wednesday, tracking a broader lift in chip stocks.
- The S&P 500 opened above 7,000 as investors lined up for the Fed’s rate decision and Big Tech earnings.
- Traders are watching whether AI-driven spending turns into profits — and what it means for capital budgets.
Broadcom Inc shares inched up 0.1% to $333.23 in early trading on Wednesday, after swinging between $332.74 and $339.47. The S&P 500 opened above 7,000 and the Nasdaq moved closer to a record as investors braced for a Federal Reserve rate decision and a rush of Big Tech earnings.
The subdued move in AVGO comes as investors head into a packed earnings stretch looking for proof that AI spending is paying off. “Expectations are very high,” said Anthony Saglimbene, chief market strategist at Ameriprise Financial, adding there is “less room” for key names to disappoint. Reuters
Rates are the other hinge. The Fed is expected to keep policy steady later Wednesday and “there is no urgency to lower rates aggressively,” Seema Shah, chief global strategist at Principal Asset Management, wrote; the decision is due at 2 p.m. EST with Chair Jerome Powell set to speak 30 minutes later. Reuters
Other chip-linked heavyweights were higher in early trade, with Nvidia up about 1.9%, AMD up 1.4% and Marvell up 2.5%.
Chip sentiment got a hand from Texas Instruments, which forecast first-quarter profit and revenue above estimates as the AI data-center buildout boosted demand for analog chips. Its shares were up about 7% in premarket trading.
In Europe, ASML reported record fourth-quarter orders and lifted its 2026 outlook on AI-driven demand, with CEO Christophe Fouquet saying capacity hikes at customers were “feeding through to orders.” Mizuho analyst Kevin Wang called the bookings and outlook “driven by AI demand” for EUV — extreme ultraviolet — lithography tools used to make leading-edge chips. Reuters
Broadcom sits across both sides of the stack: it sells networking and custom chips that land in data centers, and it expanded its software footprint after closing its $69 billion VMware deal in 2023.
But there is still a downside case. Broadcom shares tumbled last month after the company warned of slimmer future margins, a reminder that the AI revenue rush does not always translate cleanly into profitability.
Next up is the Fed statement and Powell’s remarks, then earnings after the close from Meta Platforms, Microsoft and Tesla — companies whose capital spending, or “capex” budgets, often set the tone for the AI hardware supply chain.
