Despite Earnings Surprise... $154 Billion Vanishes from AI Leaders in a Day

Broadcom Inc. (Nasdaq: AVGO) plunged 5.38% on the Nasdaq on the 3rd, closing at $455.20 (approximately ₩637,000). Its market capitalization fell to about $2.15 trillion (roughly ₩3,020 trillion), erasing around $110 billion (about ₩154 trillion) in value in a single day. Trading volume reached 30.89 million shares, suggesting that the stock’s recent AI-driven rally is undergoing a pullback amid heavy turnover.

After the market close, Broadcom reported fiscal 2026 second-quarter results that beat expectations, with revenue of $22.2 billion (around ₩31 trillion) and adjusted earnings per share of $2.44. The company attributed both its strong performance and outlook to robust demand for AI infrastructure and chips. Nonetheless, investors, noting that its forward guidance fell short of the lofty expectations set by a more than 60% rally since the start of the year, pushed shares down by over 6% in intraday and after-hours trading.

Broadcom has grown into a major U.S. semiconductor and software powerhouse centered on data-center networking chips, custom AI accelerators, and infrastructure software acquired through VMware. It is widely regarded as a prime beneficiary of AI infrastructure spending by big tech firms such as Google and Meta. The company took its current shape in 2016 when Avago acquired the original Broadcom, and it accelerated its transformation into an “AI infrastructure platform”—spanning hardware, virtualization, and cloud software—with the completion of the VMware deal in late 2023.