Investors rotated out of technology stocks on Thursday, triggering sharp declines in several major names even as blue-chip equities held firm. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was on track for its fourth consecutive closing high, while ad-tech and memory stocks led the sell-off.
AppLovin plunged 16% after missing second-quarter revenue and EBITDA expectations. The company's third-quarter revenue guidance of $2.05 billion to $2.08 billion was roughly in line with estimates, but failed to satisfy investors after the stock's strong prior run.
SanDisk dropped around 9% despite reporting fiscal fourth-quarter revenue of $8.97 billion—a 372% year-over-year surge that beat analyst estimates. The core issue was its first-quarter revenue forecast, whose midpoint fell below Wall Street expectations. CEO David Goeckeler emphasized the company's goal to reduce boom-and-bust cycles through deeper customer relationships. The board also authorized an additional $14 billion share repurchase, bringing total buyback capacity to $15.5 billion. Data center revenue more than doubled sequentially to $2.98 billion, but moderating NAND pricing and lower gross margin guidance weighed on sentiment.
Western Digital tumbled 14% despite beating earnings estimates and raising first-quarter guidance. The stock had already surged 176% year-to-date, and profit-taking set in. Other memory-related names followed: Micron slid 3.4% and Seagate declined 3.9%.
On the positive side, SoundHound AI surged 24% after posting second-quarter revenue of $61.9 million, up 45% year over year, and raising its full-year revenue guidance to $230–260 million. Moderna rose 3.5% following FDA approval of its mFLUSIVA influenza vaccine.
The broader market move reflected a rotation from tech into traditional blue chips. While this stock-market reshuffling captures headlines, it had no direct impact on cryptocurrency markets, which remained unaffected by the day's equity volatility.
