New York, Feb 17, 2026, 05:36 EST — Premarket
- Broadcom shares were down 1.1% in premarket trading, tracking a softer tone in U.S. futures.
- Investors are still picking through a valuation reset in big tech tied to AI spending payback questions.
- Next catalysts include Fed minutes on Wednesday and Broadcom’s March 4 earnings report.
Broadcom shares dipped 1.1% to $321.51 in premarket trading on Tuesday, after moving between $321.20 and $321.30 in early dealings.
The stock last closed at $325.17 on Friday, down about 1.8% for the session, with U.S. markets shut on Monday for the Presidents Day holiday.
Why this matters now: Broadcom sits in the middle of the AI buildout — and the market is no longer paying any price for it. Big technology stocks have shed large chunks of market value this year as investors question whether heavy AI spending will translate into near-term profits.
U.S. stock futures were pointing lower early Tuesday, with traders looking past a thin holiday stretch toward a busy run of macro signals, including Fed minutes on Wednesday and U.S. GDP figures on Friday, Reuters reported.
“We’re quite positive on the U.S. economy,” Kristina Clifton, a senior currency strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia, told Reuters, while noting the market is pricing a high chance of a June rate cut. The Fed minutes are the detailed record of the central bank’s last policy meeting, and they can shift rate bets fast when the language changes. Reuters
Broadcom’s sensitivity is direct: it helps hyperscale cloud customers such as Google and Meta design custom processors known as ASICs — chips built for a specific job — that compete with Nvidia’s graphics processors in parts of AI computing. But its push into AI has raised questions on profitability. “We expect first-quarter consolidated gross margin to be down approximately 100 basis points sequentially, primarily reflecting a higher mix of AI revenue,” CFO Kirsten Spears said on a post-earnings call in December. Analysts cited customer concentration and the possibility that lower-margin AI systems become a bigger slice of sales as key pressure points. Reuters
With no fresh company disclosures overnight, traders were left to trade the tape: positioning in AI-linked semiconductors, moves in rate expectations and any sign that the sector’s de-rating is done.
Attention is also shifting to Broadcom’s next set of numbers. The company has said it will report first-quarter fiscal 2026 results after the market close on March 4, followed by a management call at 5:00 p.m. ET.
For Broadcom bulls, the checklist is familiar: demand for networking chips and custom AI silicon, any update on how quickly customers are ordering, and whether software — including VMware — offsets volatility in semiconductors. For bears, it is the same story, flipped: margin pressure, customer bargaining power and the risk that AI budgets flatten out.
The next near-term market test comes Wednesday, when the Fed releases minutes from its last meeting at 2:00 p.m. ET, before the focus turns to U.S. GDP later in the week and then Broadcom’s March 4 earnings for direction on the stock.
