New York, March 4, 2026, 13:19 EST — Regular session
- Intuit shares rose about 1.6% in early afternoon trading, extending a multi-day run higher
- CEO Sasan Goodarzi pointed to a “very strong start” for TurboTax and pushed back on chatbot disruption fears
- Democrats introduced a bill to revive IRS “Direct File,” a potential long-term pressure point for paid tax software
Intuit Inc shares were up 1.6% at $440.24 in early afternoon trading on Wednesday, after swinging between $428.14 and $441.06.
The move keeps the tax-software maker in focus heading deeper into U.S. filing season, a period that typically drives its biggest quarter. Intuit last week forecast third-quarter profit below Wall Street estimates as it steps up marketing and customer support spending into the April 15 filing deadline; the company’s fiscal third quarter ends April 30. 1
At a Morgan Stanley conference on Monday, CEO Sasan Goodarzi said “TurboTax is off to a very strong start,” and pointed to 12% growth for the product even as early-season IRS return volumes ran lower. He also argued that large language models — the software behind chatbots — cannot replace tax filing tools because “an LLM is not gonna do that” when someone has to stand behind liability, and said “We’re not in love with Mailchimp” as Intuit works through issues in its marketing unit. 2
Intuit closed up 3.4% on Tuesday and 2.5% on Monday, putting the stock on track for a sixth straight session of gains, though it remains roughly 47% below its 52-week high. Trading volume in the last two sessions topped its 50-day average, MarketWatch data showed. 3
Policy risk has also re-entered the conversation. Democrats introduced legislation to revive the IRS “Direct File” program — a government-run service that would let eligible taxpayers file federal returns for free — after the Trump administration ended the initiative, Accounting Today reported. 4
More broadly, U.S. stocks were higher on Wednesday as oil prices eased and risk appetite returned despite continued Middle East tensions that have rattled global markets. 5
On the Street, several firms have reset their price targets on Intuit in recent days while keeping positive ratings; Argus cut its target to $580 from $780 and maintained a “buy,” according to MarketScreener. 6
But the rally has a few obvious tripwires: higher spending can compress margins even if customer growth holds up, and any revival of a government-run filing option would pressure the economics of simpler returns over time. Mailchimp’s turnaround is another moving part, and management has acknowledged the frustration.
Investors are watching for fresh tax-season datapoints as the April 15 deadline approaches, and for the next set of quarterly results covering the period ending April 30.
