NASDAQ Q4: 18 Stocks That Moved the Market
The NASDAQ Q4 2025 earnings season was a mixed bag. While the artificial intelligence (AI) boom supported technology companies, the NASDAQ-100 index fell 3.39% (January 8 – March 9). Many strong results were overshadowed by weak future guidance, reflecting uncertainty in the face of a cooling economy. This created a clear divide between AI winners and cautious growth companies.
Results: Operating profit accelerated by 83.6% and sales revenue by 73.2%, beating expectations. Reasons: Growth was driven by explosive demand for data center AI chips. The company is clearly the biggest winner of the artificial intelligence hardware boom. Reaction: The stock fell 5.5% on earnings day and has remained under pressure since, reflecting concerns about the loss of the Chinese market and high expectations.
Results: Operating profit grew by an impressive 101.1%, supported by the data center and gaming segments. Reasons: Despite the strong results, the company gave weaker-than-expected guidance, raising concerns about its ability to compete with NVIDIA. Reaction: The stock plummeted 17.3% on the results and has continued to fall since, showing investor disappointment with the future outlook.
Results: Operating profit grew strongly by 71.9%, exceeding analyst expectations. Reasons: Growth continued to be driven by high demand for artificial intelligence and data center solutions. The company also provided very strong future guidance. Reaction: The market reacted exceptionally positively, with the stock soaring 18.4% on earnings day. This shows investor confidence in the company's position in AI infrastructure.
Results: Operating profit grew 40.8% on the back of cost cuts, but sales revenue fell 3.7%. Reasons: The results were overshadowed by very weak future guidance, which pointed to ongoing difficulties in its core businesses and in staying competitive. Reaction: The stock fell 17.0% on the results and has remained at a low level, reflecting investors' lack of faith in the company's turnaround.
Results: The company reported an explosive 5110% growth in operating profit and 70% growth in sales revenue. Reasons: The growth was driven by exceptionally high demand for the company's Artificial Intelligence Platforms (AIP) from both the government and private sectors. Reaction: The stock rose 6.8% on the results and has since received positive ratings from analysts, which has supported the price.
Results: Operating profit grew steadily by 20.9%, led by the cloud services business. Reasons: Growth in Azure cloud services remained strong, supported by high demand for AI solutions. However, investors were concerned about the high investment costs associated with AI. Reaction: The stock fell 10.0% on the results as investors weighed the balance of costs and revenues in AI investments.
Results: Operating profit growth accelerated to 16.0%, driven by search and cloud services. Reasons: Google Cloud showed 47.8% revenue growth, but concerns were raised by costs growing faster than revenue and a loss in the 'Other Bets' segment. Reaction: The stock reacted modestly, falling 0.6%. Since then, the stock has declined along with broader technology market concerns.
Results: The company showed an impressive turn towards profitability, reducing its operating loss by 91.3%. Reasons: The strong growth was driven by a 23.2% increase in subscription revenue, which grew significantly faster than operating expenses, demonstrating good cost control. Reaction: The stock rose 4.2% on the results and has continued to climb, as the market rewarded strong growth and improving profitability.
Results: Operating profit grew exceptionally fast at 132.0%, outpacing competitors. Reasons: Growth was driven by strong subscription services revenue. However, the company gave weak guidance for the upcoming fiscal year, raising concerns about a growth slowdown. Reaction: The initial reaction was modest (+2.2%), but the stock has risen significantly since, as investors have focused on the strong fundamentals.
Results: The company turned its operations to a profit and beat analyst expectations. Reasons: However, the strong results were overshadowed by unexpectedly weak guidance for the next quarter and the departure of two top executives, which created uncertainty among investors. Reaction: The stock reacted to the news with a 22.2% drop and has not been able to recover significantly, reflecting concerns about a growth slowdown.
Results: Operating profit grew by 44.2%, supported by a 19.2% increase in service revenue. Reasons: Although the results were strong, the company itself gave weak guidance, suggesting a growth slowdown. Reaction: The stock initially reacted with a 3.7% rise but has since rallied over 20% as investors have focused on new AI partnerships.
Results: Operating profit grew steadily by 17.8%, supported by recurring revenue contracts. Reasons: Although growth had slowed, the company provided stronger-than-expected future guidance, which eased investor concerns. Reaction: The stock rose 5.3% on the results and has continued its upward trend, as the positive outlook and analyst support have restored confidence.
Results: Sales revenue grew robustly by 38.4%, but the operating loss deepened by 233.3%. Reasons: Strong demand for security technology was overshadowed by rapidly growing operating expenses related to expansion and stock-based compensation. Reaction: The market focused on the strong sales growth and future guidance, sending the stock up 17.6%. The stock has continued to rally since.
Results: Operating profit growth accelerated to 20.8% and sales revenue grew by 15.7%. Reasons: The results show that the company's discount store business model is working well in the current economic environment, attracting price-sensitive consumers. Reaction: The stock rose 8.0% on the results and has remained strong, as the company also gave an optimistic forecast and increased its dividend.
Results: Operating profit growth accelerated to 42.3% and sales revenue grew by 17.7%. Reasons: Growth was driven by strong demand for energy drinks, especially in international markets. However, rising raw material costs were a concern. Reaction: Despite the strong results, the stock fell due to margin concerns and has continued to decline since, losing over 12% of its value.
Results: The company reported an operating loss of $17.4 billion. Reasons: The huge loss resulted from a new accounting rule that required recognizing the decline in Bitcoin's value. The company's core business, software sales, grew by only 1.9%. Reaction: The market ignored the accounting loss and focused on the price of Bitcoin, sending the stock up 26.1%.
Results: The decline in operating profit accelerated to 30.1%, and net income fell by 54.6%. Reasons: The weakness was due to rising costs in the media segment and increasing competition in the broadband market. The company also paused dividend growth. Reaction: The stock reacted with a modest 1.7% rise, but the company's strategic issues and weak results suggest continued pressure.
Results: Operating profit grew strongly by 35.7%, although growth had slowed slightly. Reasons: Growth continued to be driven by high demand for semiconductor manufacturing equipment. Reaction: The stock initially rose 3.6% but has since fallen nearly 17%, reflecting broader selling pressure in the semiconductor sector and concerns about a cyclical peak.
Conclusion
The main theme of the season was the tension between artificial intelligence euphoria and a reality check. On one hand, NVIDIA, Marvell, and Palantir showed exceptional growth, confirming the real impact of the AI revolution. On the other hand, the theme of 'guidance disappointment' dominated. AMD, Intel, and MongoDB reported good results, but their stocks fell sharply due to weak future guidance. This shows that investors are nervous and are punishing any sign of uncertainty. Thirdly, the importance of profitability emerged. The market rewarded companies like CrowdStrike that showed a clear path to profitability but was skeptical of those whose costs grew faster than revenues. In summary, it was a nervous season. While the AI story provided brighter moments, the market's overall decline and reactions to guidance reflected broader concerns about interest rates and a slowing economy. The key question for the next season will be whether AI demand will persist and whether the weak guidance will prove to be too conservative or a new reality.
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