Helsinki, May 27, 2026, 14:05 (EEST)
Nokia shares in Helsinki held near a 52-week high on Wednesday. The Finnish network equipment company traded at 13.85 euros, up 0.1% at 13:32 EEST, after touching 14.22 euros earlier, Google Finance data showed. Early gains had faded but buyers remained in the stock.
Nokia’s American depositary receipts finished Tuesday at $16.46 in New York, up 6.4% and marking a third straight session of gains. Shares reached a 52-week high after a solid U.S. session. MarketWatch said volume was about double the 50-day average.
Nokia’s stock is starting to act more like an AI data-center supplier than an old-line telecom-equipment name. The market overall picked up, with the STOXX 600 rising 0.47% and the Nasdaq Composite up 1.19% according to Reuters. But what’s been pushing Nokia is demand for optical and IP networks, which are used to move data through fiber and routing gear.
Nokia stock saw movement Wednesday without new earnings out. A filing late Tuesday showed senior manager Konstanty Owczarek picked up 37,405 shares on the NYSE at a volume-weighted average price of $15.9878.
April’s Q1 earnings stays in the spotlight. Nokia said sales to AI and cloud clients rose 49%, now at 8% of all sales. Optical Networks revenue climbed 20%. CEO Justin Hotard said Nokia is “increasing our growth assumption” for Optical and IP Networks, with more spending set to meet rising demand from AI and cloud customers. Nokia Corporation | Nokia
Nokia’s comparable operating profit rose 54% to 281 million euros last month, topping analysts’ average forecast of 250 million euros, according to Reuters. The company booked 1 billion euros in orders from AI and cloud customers. Hotard said Nokia is “tracking somewhat above the mid-point” of its full-year comparable operating profit goal of 2.0 billion to 2.5 billion euros. Reuters
Nokia has launched its AI Networking Innovation Lab in Sunnyvale, California. The new lab will let Nokia test AI data center networks in partnership with AMD, Keysight, Lenovo, Nscale, Supermicro, VIAVI and Weka. Keysight’s Ram Periakaruppan said they are running the networks through “real-world conditions”. Nokia’s Rudy Hoebeke said they’re looking to lower deployment risk. Nokia Corporation | Nokia
Nokia’s list of competitors is changing as AI reshapes the market. While it’s still grouped with Ericsson for mobile networks, Nokia is now seen nearer optical and data center firms like Ciena and Arista because of AI. Reuters has reported that Ericsson missed first-quarter core profit forecasts back in April, with a jump in AI chip costs and lower North America sales weighing on the results.
Nokia’s latest surge has pushed the shares past almost every analyst target. The 12-month average price target on Investing.com sits at 9.375 euros, with analysts looking for as much as 14 euros and as little as 4.65 euros. Wednesday’s intraday high topped those marks. There isn’t much space left on the upside if the AI pipeline slows or legacy telecom margins disappoint.
Infrastructure could be a headwind as well. Hotard told Reuters in April Europe doesn’t have enough setup for AI data centres. He said stronger connectivity and more data-centre space are both required. If power, permits or cloud budgets turn into sticking points, the optical-network rally could cool off faster than the market price is showing now.
Nokia’s next quarterly and half-year results come out July 23. Until then, shares could trade on speculation about AI-cloud demand, analyst price target changes and whether the latest 52-week high holds up or gives way on volume.
