Nasdaq, Dow, S&P 500 Futures Slip As Chip Selloff Overshadows Strong Earnings Season: NFLX, SNDK, SPCX, MRVL Stocks In Focus

• The fears rippled across the technology sector as major AI names and chip stocks declined sharply. 
• The declines come at the start of a strong earnings season, with big banks kicking off the cycle earlier this week with solid results.
• On the geopolitical front, the U.S. has continued its attack on Iran for a sixth-consecutive day, causing a spike in oil prices. 

U.S. stock futures extended a decline into the overnight session late Thursday after all benchmark indexes closed lower amid a selloff in the technology sector, particularly among semiconductor names.   

Nasdaq-100 futures fell 0.61%, Dow futures were down 0.41%, and S&P 500 futures declined 0.38% at 9:11 PM EDT.  

Among ETFs tracking benchmark indexes, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY), the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) and the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA) all edged lower at the time of writing. 

The iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) was down 0.02% amid ‘bearish’ sentiment.

How Did US Markets Fare On Wednesday?

All three benchmark indexes closed lower on Thursday amid growing concerns over AI sustainability. The Nasdaq Composite led the declines, tumbling nearly 400 points to close 1.47% lower. The S&P 500 was down 0.51%, while the Dow closed 0.20% lower. 

US Market Drivers

U.S. markets bled amid rising concerns over ballooning capital expenditures from AI players after Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM) massively hiked its capital expenditures for 2026. 

The company raised its 2026 capex forecast to between $60 billion and $64 billion in its latest earnings update on Thursday, up substantially from its previous $52 billion to $56 billion range.

The fears rippled across the technology sector as major AI names including Nvidia Corp. (NVDA), Alphabet Inc. (GOOG, GOOGL), Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN), and Meta Platforms Inc. (META) closed lower at the close. 

The rout was particularly steep among semiconductor stocks, with Micron Technology Inc. (MU), Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD), Intel Corp. (INTC) and Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) clocking declines over 5% each. The VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) slumped nearly 4%. 

However, many Wall Street analysts believe that the selloff is temporary. CEO and Chief Investment Officer of Singapore-based DeFiance Capital, Arthur Cheong, said in a post on X that this appeared to be a mid-cycle correction instead of a full-cycle top. 

“Given all the recent information I'm leaning hard toward the recent correction in AI and Semi complex being mid cycle correction instead of full cycle top,” he said. “The positioning and leverage on AI and Semi names got too extreme and therefore get flushed heavily now and I expect market to recover strongly once the summer doldrums are over.”

The declines come at the start of a strong earnings season, with big banks kicking off the cycle earlier this week with solid results. On Thursday, TSM’s second-quarter print posted a beat on revenue and profit due to strong AI-driven demand, but shares slipped due to capex worries. 

Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) also posted Q2 earnings, topping estimates amid lower medical costs, while raising its earnings and cash flow outlook for 2026. Netflix Inc. (NFLX), however, posted disappointing results. 

James E. Thorne, chief market strategist at Wellington-Altus Private Wealth, said in a post on X that the decline in stocks despite strong earnings results reflected “stretched valuation and geopolitical risk, and a growing consensus that earnings growth is near its peak,” adding that it was not a surprise that “the market didn’t reward the beat.”

On the geopolitical front, the U.S. has continued its attack on Iran for a sixth-consecutive day. The U.S. Central Command updated in a post on X: “At 2 p.m. ET today, U.S. forces began conducting a new wave of strikes against Iran for the sixth consecutive night to further degrade Iranian military capabilities.”

Media reports indicate that the U.S. struck several civilian and strategic locations on Thursday, including Sirik, a key city overseeing the Strait of Hormuz. Separately, Iranshahr Airport was also targeted, with local reports indicating damage to airport facilities.

Trending Stocks To Watch 

Netflix Inc. (NFLX): Shares of the streaming giant fell nearly 9% in the overnight session on Thursday after its second-quarter (Q2) revenue missed Wall Street expectations and the third-quarter guidance also failed to impress. 

Sandisk Corp. (SNDK): The memory chipmaker’s shares plunged more than 12% at close and continued to decline in the overnight session due to a spillover of concerns over TSM’s massive capex outlook. 

SpaceX (SPCX): Elon Musk’s aerospace company continued to decline on Thursday after the company pulled back on the latest launch of its Starship rocket amid technical glitches, pressuring the stock just a day after it fell below its $135 IPO price.

Marvell Technology Inc. (MRVL): The company’s shares fell nearly 9% at close and continued to bleed overnight amid a sector-wide selloff following TSM’s results. 

Global Market Trends 

Crude oil prices continued to climb late Thursday amid the continuing tensions in the Middle East. At the time of writing, Brent crude futures expiring in September were up more than 1% to $85.11 per barrel, while WTI crude futures expiring in August also rose by over 1% to $79.83 per barrel.

Yields on the 10-year Treasury were at 4.559% at the time of writing, while spot gold prices were trading at $3,991.78 per ounce. 

Asian markets trailed U.S. stocks to decline at the open on Friday, with South Korea's KOSPI leading the fall as it traded more than 6% lower. Japan’s Nikkei 225, China’s SSE Composite index and Australian stocks were also trading lower at the time of writing.  

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