New York, February 26, 2026, 08:11 EST — Premarket
- HP Inc edged higher in premarket trading, up roughly 0.4%, after closing Wednesday just shy of $18 a share.
- HP stuck with its full-year guidance, while pointing to memory prices and U.S. trade regulations as ongoing headwinds.
- Analysts have cut price targets, while investors wait for management’s next public remarks to shed more light.
HP Inc (HPQ) edged up 0.4% to $18.29 ahead of the bell Thursday, following a Wednesday close at $18.21.
It’s a slight shift, following a harsh response to HP’s guidance. Traders face the usual tension—rising component expenses duking it out with a PC market that refuses to play along.
HP’s results carry weight up and down the PC supply chain—from suppliers to store shelves. What it says about pricing and units tends to ripple quickly, particularly with tech hardware margins already making investors nervous.
HP, a rival to Dell and Lenovo, warned late Tuesday that memory chip volatility isn’t going anywhere soon and expects 2026 PC unit shipments to drop by double digits as AI data-center demand further strains supply. That outlook sent its shares sliding around 6% after hours. For the second quarter, HP is looking for adjusted earnings of 70 to 76 cents per share—“adjusted” here means without some items. AI-capable PCs, which handle AI tasks locally, accounted for more than 35% of PC shipments last quarter, an increase from 30% previously. Interim CEO Bruce Broussard told analysts the company is watching new tariff measures but doesn’t see an immediate effect and will “keep engaging the administration.” Reuters
HP reported a 6.9% revenue increase to $14.4 billion for its fiscal first quarter ended Jan. 31, with non-GAAP earnings of 81 cents per share—figures that strip out one-off items like restructuring costs. The Personal Systems group saw revenue climb 11% to $10.3 billion, booking an operating margin of 5.0%. Printing revenue, meanwhile, dipped 2% to $4.2 billion, but margins there reached 18.3%. Free cash flow clocked in at $175 million, after capital investments. HP returned roughly $0.6 billion to shareholders through dividends and buybacks. CFO Karen Parkhill flagged “increasing memory costs” and U.S. trade rules among reasons the company now expects results near the lower end of its $2.90–$3.20 non-GAAP EPS and $2.8–$3.0 billion free-cash-flow guidance. HP
On Feb. 24, HP filed an 8-K with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, tacking on its quarterly earnings release as an exhibit.
The board laid out its CEO succession plan in a proxy statement issued around Feb. 25, ahead of a virtual annual meeting scheduled for April 16. With Enrique Lores stepping down as of Feb. 2, Broussard—on the board since 2021—stepped in as interim CEO, according to the filing, while the company searches for a permanent replacement.
Caution dominated analyst calls after the report, with a string of price target cuts rolling in. Amit Daryanani at Evercore ISI reset his bar to $20, Aaron Rakers of Wells Fargo pulled his down to $18, and Morgan Stanley’s Erik Woodring dropped his target to $16. Michael Ng at Goldman Sachs stuck to his sell rating and chopped his target to $16 as well, according to Benzinga. The risk: memory and storage costs don’t cool, tariffs edge up, and HP has to eat the costs or try to stoke demand with discounts.
HP is hiking prices and making adjustments in its supply chain. The challenge for investors: they’ll be watching for those moves to boost margins, but not at the expense of unit sales—a tough balance, especially with consumers still quick to balk at higher price tags.
Thursday’s session puts HPQ in the spotlight to see if the premarket pop carries over once the bell rings and volume comes back. After that, attention turns to memory prices, updates on tariffs, and if the move toward higher-end AI PCs is enough to keep average selling prices on the rise.
HP management heads to Morgan Stanley’s Technology, Media and Telecom event March 2, where investors are expected to grill them on memory supply and tariff strategies. Quarterly earnings come next, set for June 2.
