Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., February 25, 2026.
Brendan McDermid | Reuters
Stocks pulled back on Thursday as the latest results from tech titan Nvidia and software giant Salesforce weren’t enough to boost the broader market.
The S&P 500 fell 1.1%, while the Nasdaq Composite declined 1.9%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 170 points, or 0.4%.
Nvidia shares were last lower by about 5%, even after the chip giant posted a fourth-quarter earnings and revenue beat. The decline put the stock on pace for its worst day since April. Other chip stocks such as Broadcom, Lam Research, Western Digital and Applied Materials all fell more than 6%.
On the flip side, Salesforce rose 2% after the software company’s latest quarterly results beat on the top and bottom lines. The move higher was kept in check by a disappointing fiscal 2027 revenue forecast. Salesforce has been one of the biggest victims of recent artificial intelligence disruption fears.
“Salesforce earnings were solid, but its weak guidance is not helping to quell this software sentiment wreck,” said James Demmert, chief investment officer at Main Street Research. “Salesforce faces a rough future due to AI advancements, but we also think the software industry’s recent declines are a bit overdone.”
To be sure, software stocks saw gains Thursday, with the iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF (IGV) advancing more than 1%. The fund is still solidly in bear market territory, down roughly 30% from its recent high.
The financial and real estate sectors also moved up in the session, with stocks such as JPMorgan Chase and CBRE Group adding 0.7% and 1.6%, respectively.
The moves follow an upbeat day for U.S. equities. Software and tech names bounced back in the regular session. Still, sentiment has been fragile in software and cybersecurity stocks this year as worries remain about the rapidly developing capabilities of AI products that could interfere with incumbent software vendors’ businesses.