CrowdStrike and Meta lead AI software surge as Bank of America's bubble call hammers semiconductor stocks, SOXX -6.4%

CrowdStrike Holdings surged 10.2% and Meta Platforms jumped 8.8% Wednesday, marking one of the sharpest software-vs-hardware divergences of 2026 as Bank of America's bubble risk warning sent chip equipment names down as much as 10% on the first trading day of the second half of the year. The S&P 500 slipped 0.22% to 7,483, the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.66% to 26,040, and the SOXX semiconductor ETF shed 6.4% to close at 599.70, trimming a year-to-date advance that had reached 91% as recently as Tuesday.

Today's biggest movers

CrowdStrike surges 10.2% as Wells Fargo sets $900 target and four-for-one split takes effect

Wells Fargo analyst Michael Turrin raised his price target on CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: CRWD) from $500 to $900 Wednesday, reiterating a Buy rating and citing record first-quarter net new annual recurring revenue and the company's raised full-year guidance. CRWD closed at $772.74, adding $71.67 on the day and setting a fresh 52-week high before Wednesday's close.

The Q1 FY2027 report showed revenue of $1.39 billion and adjusted earnings per share of $1.10, both above analyst consensus. Management raised full-year guidance for revenue, adjusted EPS, and net new ARR. CrowdStrike also confirmed a four-for-one stock split effective after Wednesday's close; shares will begin trading at the post-split price on Thursday, July 2, at approximately $193. A separate analyst consensus from S&P Global, covering 54 analysts, pegs the average pre-split target at $712, implying Wells Fargo's $900 target stands 26% above the pack.

Meta jumps 8.8% on plan to sell AI cloud capacity to external customers

Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ: META) gained 8.8% to close at $612.91 Wednesday after reports that the company is building a cloud infrastructure business that would sell access to AI computing power and AI models to external customers. The plan would monetize data center capacity that Meta has been building in anticipation of its $125 to $145 billion 2026 capital expenditure program, a spending level that had weighed on free cash flow projections throughout the first half of the year.

The development reframes Meta's infrastructure spend from a cost overhang into a potential revenue line. The company's 64-analyst consensus carries a "Strong Buy" rating and a 12-month price target of $827, representing 35% upside from Wednesday's close. Meta reports next quarterly earnings on July 28, when investors will look for early indications of cloud-business revenue and whether AI capital spending is on track to moderate.

Bank of America bubble risk note triggers broad semiconductor selloff; chip equipment hardest hit

Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ: AMAT) fell 10.0% to $650.91 and Lam Research Corp. (NASDAQ: LRCX) dropped 9.7% to $391.26 Wednesday, leading a sector-wide pullback tied to a Bank of America research note that flagged rising bubble risk in semiconductor stocks. Bank of America's Bubble Risk Indicator registered a score of 0.91 for the PHLX Semiconductor Sector, one of its highest readings for any major industry group, and the bank recommended reducing exposure to AI-related chip holdings.

Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) fell 9.0% to $127.02, giving back gains from Monday's session covered in Tuesday's recap. Bank of America's note cited Intel's 222% year-to-date advance as outpacing its operational fundamentals, with manufacturing yields on the 18A-P process node still below the threshold for profitable commercial-scale production. The bank stopped short of declaring a formal bubble but urged valuation discipline entering the second half.

ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ: ASML) lost 7.4% to $1,843.04 and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (NYSE: TSM) fell 7.0% to $444.23, erasing a week of gains in a single session. Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NASDAQ: AMD) dropped 6.9% to $540.88, though AMD retains a 142% year-to-date advance. The AMAT and LRCX declines are particularly striking given that both stocks had recovered sharply in the session covered last Monday; Wednesday's selloff effectively wiped out that two-session rebound in one day.

Palantir rises 7.8% as Nvidia deal, Army contract, and short covering converge

Palantir Technologies Inc. (NYSE: PLTR) rose 7.8% to $125.73, lifted by three simultaneous catalysts: an expanded commercial agreement with Nvidia Corp., a new contract to supply the U.S. Army with its Foundry data platform, and a public reduction of Michael Burry's short position in the stock. President Trump's financial disclosure, also filed Wednesday, showed ownership of at least $1 million in Palantir shares with recent additions.

Palantir reported Q1 2026 revenue of $1.633 billion, up 85% year over year, with a gross margin of 84.1% and free cash flow of approximately $892 million. Despite the operational momentum, PLTR trades at roughly 156 times trailing earnings, a valuation that has historically attracted short sellers. Wednesday's combination of a large military contract and Burry's disclosed exit reinforced bullish sentiment near-term, though the stock remains 25% below its start-of-year level.

Notable but quieter

MongoDB Inc. (NASDAQ: MDB) +7.0% to $359.38. MongoDB posted fiscal Q1 revenue of $688 million, up 25% year over year, led by Atlas cloud database and rising AI-workload adoption. Bank of America analyst Koji Ikeda raised the firm's price target to $450 from $390, keeping a Buy rating, citing higher confidence in demand. The result reversed the narrative from the June 24 session, when MDB fell 6% on AI software profit concerns ahead of the print.

ServiceNow Inc. (NYSE: NOW) +6.6% to $105.80. Guggenheim analyst John DiFucci upgraded NOW from Neutral to Buy with a $125 price target, writing that "Armageddon has been called off" after a selloff that left the stock 49% below its 52-week high. Benchmark independently raised its target to $130, citing a clean operating model. Last Thursday's session saw NOW surge on enterprise AI rotation; Wednesday's move reinforces that pattern.

Salesforce Inc. (NYSE: CRM) +4.2% to $163.23. CRM benefited from the same Guggenheim upgrade cycle that lifted NOW; the two enterprise software names are frequently upgraded together on shared enterprise-AI thesis calls. Salesforce remains 35.6% below its start-of-year level despite the session's gain.

Palo Alto Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: PANW) +3.2% to $352.04. PANW extended its run as the AI security segment outperformed the broader technology tape, adding to a 96.3% year-to-date advance. Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) gained 3.0% to $384.28, driven by continued enterprise AI adoption tailwinds rather than a single-day catalyst.

What to watch tomorrow

CrowdStrike shares will open Thursday under the post-split price of approximately $193, adjusting for the four-for-one split that takes effect after Wednesday's close; options and price targets will adjust accordingly. Meta Platforms reports earnings on July 28, at which point investors will look for the first hard numbers on its cloud infrastructure revenue ambitions. The semiconductor equipment group faces a key technical level: AMAT and LRCX have now surrendered their two-session rebound from last Monday in a single day; sustained closes below Tuesday's lows would signal a more durable rotation out of the group. On the macro calendar, any Federal Reserve commentary or labor market data this week could reset rate-cut expectations and ripple through capital-expenditure-sensitive AI names.

Not investment advice.