New York, Jan 29, 2026, 15:30 ET — Regular session.
- Intuit shares dropped roughly 7.5% in afternoon trading, following a broad selloff in U.S. software stocks.
- Investors are rethinking how quickly AI tools might weigh on subscription software demand, triggering the drop.
- Attention shifts to Intuit’s upcoming earnings report and what it might reveal about tax-season trends.
Intuit Inc shares plunged 7.5% to $498.09 in Thursday afternoon trading, wiping out roughly $40 per share from Wednesday’s close. The stock hovered close to its session lows.
This shift is significant since Intuit is now viewed less as a tax-season defensive play and more like a high-multiple software stock — a trade that has soured quickly this week as investors pull back from the sector.
The broader software selloff picked up pace after SAP’s cloud forecast and ServiceNow’s post-earnings tumble shook confidence, pushing the S&P 500 Software and Services Index to its lowest point in nine months. “The market’s kind of in our view pricing a worst-case scenario,” said Adam Turnquist, chief technical strategist at LPL Financial. He added investors are behaving as if “software is dead” amid AI-driven disruption. (Reuters)
Microsoft’s drop reignited skepticism over whether hefty AI investments will deliver returns soon. “AI investments will eat the software companies’ lunches,” warned John Praveen, managing director and co-CIO at Paleo Leon. (Reuters)
Intuit, the company behind TurboTax and QuickBooks, is heading into a period when U.S. tax filing, refunds, and small-business demand usually dominate the conversation—and can sway its stock. On Thursday, that familiar seasonal backdrop didn’t offer much support.
On Wednesday, the company unveiled its “Career Pipeline Program,” designed to upskill one million students within five years amid AI’s impact on accounting. “Our commitment to upskill one million students is rooted in listening to our accounting partners,” said Simon Williams, Intuit’s vice president for its accountant segment. (Intuit Inc.)
Investors are now grappling with a key question: is this week’s sell-off a widespread valuation reset, or the first hint that AI-powered “good enough” tools are cutting into demand for traditional subscription software — the backbone of much of the sector’s growth narrative?
There’s a more straightforward danger here: this kind of selling can spiral. If the next batch of large-cap software earnings disappoint, the sell-off could accelerate—even if there’s no fresh news from Intuit.
On the flip side, sector-level panic can evaporate fast if earnings and guidance confirm that core demand remains steady. Investors might also dial back fears if they conclude the worst-case AI disruption story is overhyped, especially for products linked to regulated workflows like tax filing.
Eyes are on Intuit’s upcoming quarterly earnings, penciled in by Nasdaq for about Feb. 24. Investors will be watching closely for any updated indications on demand as the filing season moves forward. (Nasdaq)
