NEW YORK, February 18, 2026, 19:25 (EST) — After-hours
Shopify Inc.’s U.S.-listed shares rose about 7% on Wednesday and held near those levels in after-hours trading, helped by a fresh bullish call from Truist Securities. The stock was last up $8.12 at $121.64.
The move matters because Shopify has been caught in the market’s back-and-forth over which software names benefit from artificial intelligence and which ones get disrupted by it. Traders have been quick to punish anything that looks like “platform risk,” even when the quarter is fine.
It also lands just as Shopify’s new share repurchase program turns from a headline into an actual bid. The plan became effective on Feb. 17 and has no fixed expiration, a filing showed. (Securities and Exchange Commission)
Truist upgraded Shopify to Buy from Hold and lifted its price target — a broker estimate of where the stock could trade — to $150 from $110. “Large drawdown in software valuations related to AI fears has created attractive buying oppty for L-T investors in Shopify,” analyst Terry Tillman wrote, pointing to Shopify’s scale and recent growth. (Investing)
A separate note carried by TheFly said Truist also framed the upgrade as a bet that Shopify can ride “agentic commerce” — AI tools that can take shopping actions for consumers — and keep expanding its U.S. e-commerce share beyond the current 14%-plus. (TipRanks)
Shopify said it expects to execute the repurchase using pre-arranged algorithmic trading instructions, and set no quarterly or annual minimums. “We are launching this share repurchase program from a position of financial and operating strength,” Chief Financial Officer Jeff Hoffmeister said in the earnings press release. (Securities and Exchange Commission)
The buyback and the latest upgrade follow last week’s earnings report, when Shopify issued an upbeat quarterly revenue outlook but flagged pressure on cash generation. “This was an excellent result for Shopify,” D.A. Davidson analyst Gil Luria said, while Shopify President Harley Finkelstein told investors: “The AI era has now reached commerce.” (Reuters)
Shopify traded between $112.56 and $124.71 on Wednesday, with about 18.2 million shares changing hands, according to Investing.com data. The broader market was also firmer: the S&P 500 ended up 0.6% and the Nasdaq gained 0.8%. (Investing)
But the setup can still break the other way. The stock has been swinging with the broader software tape, and any renewed wave of “AI disruption” selling — or a wobble in consumer demand — could drag it back toward last week’s lows.
For the next session, investors will watch whether the Truist call draws follow-through buying once regular trade opens on Thursday, and whether the repurchase program shows up as steady support on dips. Walmart, widely viewed as a read-through on U.S. consumer spending, is due to report quarterly results before the opening bell on Feb. 19. (Investopedia)
