2/26 US Stock Market - Tech Stocks Rebound as AI Fears Subside

February 25, 2026 Market Analysis

## 1. Overall Market Overview

On February 25 (local time), the US stock market had a somewhat complex day: on the surface, it was a tech-led rebound, but market sentiment remained negative.

- Reporting basis: 2026-02-25T22:30:33.190876

- Market sentiment: Negative

- Rising sectors: 4 out of 11

- Leading sector: Technology (+1.45%)

- Lagging sector: Basic Materials (-1.33%)

At the index level, Nasdaq showed relative strength thanks to tech strength, moving back near 2-week highs, with semiconductors and software leading the gains. Recently, there has been significant fear about AI investment burdens and industry disruption, but today saw a reversal as the perception that "AI fears were excessive" came to the fore. (home.saxo)

---

## 2. Sector Flows and Implications

### Technology – +1.45%: Strong Software-Led Rebound

The Technology sector posted a +1.45% return with 2.26% volatility, the best performance among 11 sectors. In particular, the software industry, which has been most severely impacted by recent AI concerns, rebounded strongly.

Leading gainers

- Workday (WDAY): +10.49%

- Intuit (INTU): +7.69%

- Atlassian (TEAM): +7.03%

These companies all share a common trait: they provide cloud-based enterprise, development, and financial software. Over the past few weeks, fears spread that "AI will render existing software companies obsolete," leading to a sharp decline with the software ETF (based on IGV) down more than 20% since the start of the year. (www-tc.aicoin.com)

However, as analysis supporting the view that for AI models to deliver actual value, integration with internal corporate data and existing business systems is essential has gained traction,

- Large software companies can leverage AI as a "tool" to be placed on top of existing services rather than as a threat, and

- Software already deeply embedded in corporate IT infrastructure is difficult to "replace" in the short term has come into focus. (www-tc.aicoin.com)

### Financial Services – +0.92%: Fintech and Data Companies Lead

- Sector return: +0.92%

- Major gainers:

- Coinbase (COIN): +6.50%

- Erie Indemnity (ERIE): +3.96%

- FactSet (FDS): +3.84%

Coinbase has benefited from recent cryptocurrency market recovery and expanding stablecoin market share, capitalizing on digital asset infrastructure demand. With the stablecoin USDC significantly increasing its market share, despite regulatory risks limiting short-term momentum, expectations of being the "leading platform within regulated frameworks" are being reflected in the stock price. (thestreet.com)

FactSet benefited from a reassessment of the data and research infrastructure industry broadly alongside the software sector rebound. Some reports suggest that AI fears have been exaggerated, with the logic that companies holding accurate data will play increasingly important roles in the AI era gaining prominence. (www-tc.aicoin.com)

### Communication Services – +0.38%

- Sector return: +0.38%

- Major gainers:

- AppLovin (APP): +6.86%

- Netflix (NFLX): +3.00%

- The Trade Desk (TTD): +2.53%

Advertising and streaming platforms are experiencing

- Recovery in advertising demand expectations,

- Enhanced data-driven targeting and AI recommendation algorithms

both working simultaneously. Since AppLovin and TTD are closer to algorithm/data companies that improve advertising efficiency, "growth stock premium" is reattaching despite economic concerns.

### Utilities – +0.32%

- Sector return: +0.32%

- Major gainers: CEG, NI, CNP, etc.

Defensive-oriented utilities saw only modest gains without major volatility. In an environment of simultaneous interest rate and economic uncertainty, we can interpret this as sustained minimal demand for dividend-paying and defensive assets.

### Consumer Cyclicals, Industrials, and Basic Materials – Broad Weakness

- Consumer Cyclical: -0.23%

- Industrials: -1.07%

- Basic Materials: -1.33% (weakest)

In contrast to the growth-led rebound, industries closely tied to the real economy were broadly weak.

- Uncertainty regarding interest rates and tariffs (10% tariff implementation and mention of possible additional 15% remain, (home.saxo)

- Growing concerns about global economic slowdown are being reflected in stock prices as commodity and industrial demand weakens.

That fertilizer and gold mining companies (MOS, CF, NEM) in the basic materials sector saw only modest gains suggests that demand related to defensive gold and essential agricultural products remains relatively steady.

---

## 3. Notable Individual Stocks

### 1) Workday (WDAY) – +10.49%

Workday, a cloud-based human resources and financial management software company, showed the strongest technical rebound following the recent broad software decline.

- Investors view AI adoption as potentially strengthening Workday's HR and financial data analysis capabilities,

- As a SaaS vendor with large enterprise customers already in place, the perception has strengthened that it is close to "infrastructure that will grow with AI."

The valuation that was excessively suppressed amid the AI fears of recent days has rapidly recovered alongside the sector-wide software re-rating. (newsmax.com)

### 2) Intuit (INTU) – +7.69%

Intuit is famous for TurboTax, QuickBooks, and other small business and personal financial management software.

- Recent earnings confirmed solid growth with both EPS and revenue exceeding consensus, (ainvest.com)

- Its strategy to integrate AI into tax and accounting data to enhance predictive analytics and automated recommendations is coming into focus, with the company being reassessed as an "AI beneficiary."

However, some analysts are presenting conservative price targets and warning of valuation pressures due to insider selling history, so future volatility could remain high. (ainvest.com)

### 3) Atlassian (TEAM) – +7.03%

Atlassian, famous for collaboration tools like Jira and Confluence, is also a leading beneficiary of the software rally.

- In early February earnings, both revenue and profit exceeded market expectations, and cloud revenue surpassed $1 billion for the first time in a quarter. (ticker.report)

- Despite this, the stock price fell sharply at the time due to AI-related fears, but in this software rebound phase, it is being re-examined as a stock with "solid fundamentals but oversold due to fear."

---

## 4. Macro and Sentiment Factors: Why Are Only Tech Stocks Rising?

The three key keywords moving markets recently are AI, tariffs, and interest rates.

1. AI fear → AI reassessment

- Initially, an extreme scenario that "AI will replace all existing software and services" was highlighted, causing the software sector to plummet.

- However, as time has passed, the view that AI will actually layer on top of existing software has gained traction. The thought is that large software companies with data and customer relationships already established will leverage AI tools to boost productivity, a more apt characterization as "AI working alongside existing infrastructure." (newsmax.com)

2. Tariff and trade uncertainty

- The newly implemented 10% blanket tariff and possibility of additional tariffs burden global manufacturing, commodity, and industrial companies. (home.saxo)

- Conversely, software and digital service companies face relatively less physical supply chain burden, so policy risks act less directly.

3. Interest rates and growth stock premiums

- In high interest rate environments, growth stock valuations come under pressure, but beyond a certain level, there is a tendency for funds to flow back into "companies with growth stories."

- Amid economic slowdown concerns, investors are turning their attention back to tech and software companies that are less economically sensitive while having clear long-term growth narratives.

In summary, sectors sensitive to real economic activity are being pressured by tariff and demand slowdown concerns, while tech stocks are emerging as a "growth alternative" alongside AI reassessment.

---

## 5. Investor Perspective Checklist

Even if you're not an expert, here are the points you can confirm from today's market:

- 1) Renewed focus on the role of software and data companies

In the AI era, data, customer relationships, and the ability to integrate with existing workflows may have greater value than the models themselves.

- 2) Expanding sector decoupling

This is a period where tech stocks and real economy-sensitive sectors' price movements are diverging. It's necessary to check if either weighting in your portfolio is excessive.

- 3) Volatility remains elevated

A single news item related to AI, tariffs, or interest rates can cause software and growth stocks to swing sharply in both directions. A "staggered approach on sharp declines and risk management on sharp rallies" strategy appears more effective than chasing short-term trend reversals.

---

## 6. Closing

The February 25 US market can be summarized in one line: "Software's counterattack amid AI fear relief." However, considering the cumulative decline since the start of the year, this rebound still appears to be a technical and emotional correction.

Key points to watch going forward are

- Actual AI revenue and profit contributions from major tech and software companies,

- Direction of tariff and trade policy,

- Federal Reserve's interest rate path

These economic and policy mechanisms behind today's numbers will help you understand the market more systematically without being swayed by short-term fluctuations.

This content is written for informational purposes only and does not recommend investment in specific stocks or assets.

Source: https://nextinvest.org/ko