HSBC believes the recent period of volatility across global financial markets has largely passed, with the bank saying a key sell signal in its market sentiment framework has disappeared, reinforcing its positive outlook for equities.
In a research note, Chief Multi-Asset Strategist Max Kettner argued that despite several significant market shocks over recent months, global equities have remained remarkably resilient.
Kettner highlighted a series of events that created turbulence across ******* et classes, including a $30-per-barrel surge in oil prices following renewed conflict in the Middle East, a 40% decline in Asian memory-related stocks, sharp losses in momentum shares and a 50% drop in ******* eX's share price from its intraday peak.
"And, yet, nothing has happened," he wrote, noting global equities remain only around 1% below the record highs reached in early June.
HSBC believes several factors have helped sustain the equity market despite recent uncertainty.

#HSBC #kettner

Environmental groups have been campaigning to encourage banks and other financial institutions to divest from fossil fuels for years, with efforts growing stronger since the Covid-19 pandemic and the global push to transition away from oil, gas, and coal to renewable alternatives.
In June, the Bank of England quietly announced that it would no longer be accepting bonds ****** ociated with coal operations for key loan arrangements. The ban will be enforced from October. It is the latest move to encourage a shift away from thermal coal for electricity production. The Bank of England said it would no longer be allowing commercial banks to use bonds linked to thermal coal as "collateral" when borrowing money from the financial institution.
The move suggests that any bonds linked to thermal coal are now considered too risky to appear on its balance sheet, as consumers and governments worldwide call for a shift away from "the dirtiest fossil fuel". The rapid global transition to renewable energy could lead certain types of fossil fuels to depreciate in value over the coming decades, making them more of a financial risk.
The Bank of England stated that thermal coal companies "can be exposed to potential financial risks connected to the adjustment of the economy towards net zero," in its policy statement. It said it would also discount the value of bonds in other relevant sectors "to protect the Bank against financial risks".
It is common for the Bank of England to provide loans to major banks operating in the United Kingdom, including Barclays, Lloyds, NatWest, and HSBC, to help them settle transactions and conduct operations efficiently. To gain access to these loans, commercial banks must provide collateral as a guarantee, typically in the form of bonds.

#banks #fossil #away #encourage

Concerns that major technology companies are spending too aggressively on artificial intelligence infrastructure have become the dominant theme influencing AI-related equities, according to HSBC, as investors continue to shift between competing market narratives in 2026.
In a recent research note, HSBC ***** yst Alastair Pinder introduced a proprietary clustering model that tracks how different AI themes influence global equity markets by ***** yzing the performance of hyperscalers, semiconductor companies, software firms and Chinese internet stocks.
HSBC said equity markets and broader market internals have experienced sharp swings this year as investors "jump between competing AI narratives."
The bank highlighted the launch of Moonshot's Kimi K3 model and reports of increasing lithography competition from mainland China as recent developments that have influenced investor positioning.
According to the firm's framework, market behavior currently falls into five distinct AI-driven regimes.

#according #Companies

Is Micron (NASDAQ: MU) stock just a momentum stock now?
It kind of feels like it. After falling more than 25% over the past four trading days, shares of the semiconductor memory stock took off like a rocket this morning, surging 9.6% through 9:40 a.m. ET.
Missed Nvidia in 2009? This Rare Signal Is Flashing Again. In 2009, a "Double Down" signal flashed for a little-known chipmaker called Nvidia. For the first time in years, that same "Total Conviction" signal is flashing for a company 1/100th the size of Nvidia. Continue »
The reason for this, says HSBC, is competing "narratives" about what's going on in artificial intelligence.
Image source: Getty Images.

#NVIDIA #flashing #NASDAQ

Morgan Stanley kept Alibaba (BABA) stock as a "top pick" ahead of late-August earnings. ****** yst Gary Yu made the call over two weeks after cutting his target to $180 from $190.
That target sits roughly 60% above where BABA shares closed on Friday at $112.14. Thus, Wall Street is telling clients the stock is worth far more than buyers are currently willing to pay.
Yu lowered his Alibaba target in early July. He still kept an overweight rating on the stock.
Other banks pivoted in the same direction. HSBC cut its target to $170 from $176 in July. The bank still maintained its buy rating.
Daiwa moved earlier, cutting to $175 from $200 on June 24. The firm pointed to weak sales during China's 618 shopping festival.

#rating

BENGALURU, July 24 (Reuters) - India's private sector growth skidded to its weakest in over four years in July as a sharp ‌slowdown in services constrained overall expansion even though rising export ‌orders and hiring offered limited support, a survey showed.
• HSBC's flash India Composite Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), compiled by S&P Global, fell to 54.3 in July from June's 57.1, confounding a Reuters poll median forecast for a jump to 57.7. However the index remained above the 50-mark separating growth from contraction.
• Export ‌orders offered a brighter spot ⁠with international sales growing at the fastest pace since March.
• Among sectors, services was the biggest lag. The ⁠business activity index fell to 53.1 from June's 57.4 - its weakest reading since February 2022 - weighed by challenging market conditions, order cancellations and reduced client enquiries.
• Manufacturing was steadier but not strong enough to change the broader trend. ‌The factory activity index eased to a four-month low of 53.9 from 54.2. Output and new orders continued to expand at a stronger pace helped by robust demand from overseas markets.

#orders #reuters #Services

So far, artificial intelligence has mostly been considered in terms of infrastructure investments, which have attracted all the investors' attention to companies like Nvidia (NVDA) and hyperscalers. The situation might start changing soon as HSBC is convinced that Apple (AAPL) is approaching the time when it can benefit from having a big installed base instead of engaging in an AI arms race. At the same time, the company has one of its best product lines ever, which makes Apple ready to enter a new upgrade cycle as it takes back the ******* le of the world's most valuable publicly traded company from Nvidia.
Apple is the largest consumer technology company in the world that designs iPhones, Macs, iPads, wearable products, and an expanding ecosystem of services. Headquartered in Cupertino, California, the company has a market capitalization of nearly $4.9 trillion, thus making Apple one of the most valuable businesses in history.
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#NVIDIA

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) is one of the 8 Worst Blue Chip Stocks to Buy Now.
On July 10, 2026, Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) and Astellas Pharma (ALPMY) announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved PADCEV, a Nectin-4 directed antibody-drug conjugate, plus the PD-1 inhibitor Keytruda or Keytruda QLEX as neoadjuvant and adjuvant treatment for adult patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer, regardless of cisplatin eligibility. Pfizer said this marks the first platinum-free regimen approved for adult patients with MIBC, regardless of cisplatin eligibility.
The approval was based on results from the pivotal Phase 3 EV-304 clinical trial, which were presented at the 2026 American Society of Clinical Oncology Genitourinary Cancers Symposium. The expanded indication builds on the November 2025 U.S. FDA approval of the combination for use as neoadjuvant and adjuvant treatment in cisplatin-ineligible adult patients with MIBC, based on results from the EV-303 Phase 3 clinical trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Also on July 10, BofA lowered the firm's price target on Pfizer to $26 from $27 and kept a Neutral rating on the shares. On July 6, HSBC downgraded Pfizer to Hold from Buy with a price target of $28, down from $32. HSBC lowered its view of the probability to market of sigvotatug vedotin to 40% following the Phase 3 setback in NSCLC and said it is now "less convinced" regarding short-term re-rating potential due to recent executive management changes and "a paucity of short-term re-rating catalysts."
Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) discovers, develops, manufactures, markets, distributes, and sells biopharmaceutical products in the United States and internationally.

Artificial intelligence (AI) has been the only recurring investment theme in the market over the past three years. But now Wall Street is starting to look beyond the usual semiconductor names for the next wave of market leaders.
Two industrial giants, Caterpillar (CAT) and Rockwell Automation (ROK), look enticing as they continue to capitalize on massive investment trends that go far beyond just AI.
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Intel Just Lost a Veteran Employee. It Likely Just Won a Key Catalyst for INTC Stock in the Process.
SK Hynix Stock Debuts for U.S. Investors Tomorrow. The DRAM ETF Could Be the Biggest Loser.

Allentown, Pennsylvania-based PPL Corporation (PPL) provides electricity and natural gas to approximately 3.6 million customers in the United States. The company has a market cap of $26.8 billion and operates through Kentucky Regulated, Pennsylvania Regulated, and Rhode Island Regulated segments.
PPL is expected to release its Q2 2026 earnings soon. Ahead of the event, ******* ysts expect the company's EPS to be $0.35 on a diluted basis, up 9.4% from $0.32 in the year-ago quarter. The company has exceeded Wall Street's EPS estimates in two of its last four quarters, while missing on two occasions.
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Schaffhausen, Switzerland-based Aptiv PLC (APTV) designs, manufactures, and sells vehicle components for the automotive and commercial vehicle markets in North America and internationally. The company has a market cap of $12.4 billion and operates through three segments: Advanced Safety and User Experience, Engineered Components, and Electrical Distribution Systems.
APTV is expected to release its Q2 2026 earnings on Tuesday, Aug. 4, before the market opens. Ahead of the event, ******* ysts expect the company's EPS to be $1.42 on a diluted basis, down 33% from $2.12 in the year-ago quarter. The company has exceeded Wall Street's EPS estimates in all of its last four quarters.
Intel Stock Is 'Too Good to Ignore' as HSBC Sets a New Street-High Price Target
Intel Just Lost a Veteran Employee. It Likely Just Won a Key Catalyst for INTC Stock in the Process.
SK Hynix Stock Debuts for U.S. Investors Tomorrow. The DRAM ETF Could Be the Biggest Loser.

September S&P 500 E-Mini futures (ESU26) are down -0.11%, and September Nasdaq 100 E-Mini futures (NQU26) are down -0.41% this morning, taking a breather after a chip-led rally in the prior session, with all eyes on the U.S. trading debut of SK Hynix.
Chip and AI infrastructure stocks slipped in pre-market trading as investors turned cautious ahead of SK Hynix's debut on Wall Street. ****** ysts view the South Korean memory chip giant's U.S. listing as a fresh test of investor appetite for the AI trade.
Intel Stock Is 'Too Good to Ignore' as HSBC Sets a New Street-High Price Target
Intel Just Lost a Veteran Employee. It Likely Just Won a Key Catalyst for INTC Stock in the Process.
SK Hynix Stock Debuts for U.S. Investors Tomorrow. The DRAM ETF Could Be the Biggest Loser.

SWIFT is taking its biggest step into crypto after confirming its blockchain-based shared ledger is ready for initial use. Built on Hyperledger Besu over nine months, the network will let 17 major banks, including HSBC, Citi, UBS, BNP Paribas, DBS, ANZ, and Standard Chartered, pilot live cross-border payments using tokenized deposits.
The rollout moves beyond closed sandbox testing into real banking operations. Rather than replacing existing payment rails, the ledger coordinates tokenized deposits between participating banks while final settlement stays on the current infrastructure. That could help banks process payments during nights, weekends, and across time zones, where delays have long been a problem.
Discover: The Best Token Presales
The shared ledger sits above existing payment rails instead of replacing them. When a participating bank starts a transaction, the platform coordinates funding commitments across counterparties and gives every institution the same real-time view of payment status. Final settlement still runs through RTGS systems and Swift's existing messaging network.
The pilot uses bank-issued tokenized deposits rather than stablecoins or public crypto ***** ets. Each token is backed one-to-one by commercial bank deposits, giving it the same regulated status as money held in a traditional bank account. In practice, the blockchain improves how banks move and coordinate funds, while the underlying money and compliance framework remain unchanged.

Super Micro Computer (SMCI) stock has been an underperformer among technology names with negative returns of 42.6% in the last 52-weeks. Even with AI-driven demand coupled with robust top-line growth, SMCI stock has failed to impress.
However, with manufacturing expansion and "Data Center Building Block Solutions" being a growth driver, a potential stock reversal seems to be brewing. In April 2026, SMCI established its largest and fourth Silicon Valley campus. Further, the company is also expanding its manufacturing footprint in Taiwan and the Middle-East.
Intel Stock Is 'Too Good to Ignore' as HSBC Sets a New Street-High Price Target
Intel Just Lost a Veteran Employee. It Likely Just Won a Key Catalyst for INTC Stock in the Process.
SK Hynix Stock Debuts for U.S. Investors Tomorrow. The DRAM ETF Could Be the Biggest Loser.

RBC Capital Markets downgraded AeroVironment (AVAV) shares to "Sector Perform" on Thursday, citing concerns that the firm's ambitious long-term financial targets may prove difficult to achieve.
The downgrade came just one day after AVAV management outlined goals of at least 15% organic revenue growth by the end of this decade.
Intel Stock Is 'Too Good to Ignore' as HSBC Sets a New Street-High Price Target
Intel Just Lost a Veteran Employee. It Likely Just Won a Key Catalyst for INTC Stock in the Process.
SK Hynix Stock Debuts for U.S. Investors Tomorrow. The DRAM ETF Could Be the Biggest Loser.

The S&P 500 Index ($SPX) (SPY) on Thursday closed up +0.81%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ($DOWI) (DIA) closed up +0.27%, and the Nasdaq 100 Index ($IUXX) (QQQ) closed up +1.62%. September E-mini S&P futures (ESU26) rose +0.82%, and September E-mini Nasdaq futures (NQU26) rose +1.63%.
Stock indexes settled higher on Thursday, led by a rally in chipmakers, after South Korea's SK Hynix saw its American depositary receipts (ADRs) listing more than seven times oversubscribed, signaling strong investor demand. The US offering by SK Hynix would raise about $24.5 billion for the company, making it the second-largest by a foreign company, according to Bloomberg calculations. Strength in trucking and freight stocks also boosted the broader market after Citigroup upgraded the sector. In addition, the decline in crude oil prices lifted airline stocks and cruise line operators.
Intel Stock Is 'Too Good to Ignore' as HSBC Sets a New Street-High Price Target
Intel Just Lost a Veteran Employee. It Likely Just Won a Key Catalyst for INTC Stock in the Process.
SK Hynix Stock Debuts for U.S. Investors Tomorrow. The DRAM ETF Could Be the Biggest Loser.

Mizuho upgraded Five Below (FIVE) shares from "Neutral" to "Outperform" on July 9, while slightly trimming its price target to $220 from $225. The upgrade reflects the investment firm's view that FIVE's steep selloff has created an attractive entry point for investors willing to look past near-term market volatility.
At the time of writing, Five Below stock is down more than 25% versus its April high.
Intel Stock Is 'Too Good to Ignore' as HSBC Sets a New Street-High Price Target
Intel Just Lost a Veteran Employee. It Likely Just Won a Key Catalyst for INTC Stock in the Process.
SK Hynix Stock Debuts for U.S. Investors Tomorrow. The DRAM ETF Could Be the Biggest Loser.

T-Mobile (TMUS) stock has tumbled 22% over the past 52 weeks and fallen 11% since the beginning of 2026. One of the reasons for this struggle is concern over the competition that T-Mobile could face from satellite companies. Specifically, the satellites of these firms enable them to provide direct-to-device (D2D) voice and data services to unmodified smartphones.
However, many of these D2D providers are actually looking to partner with carriers rather than replace them — and for important logistical reasons, that strategy is unlikely to change for the foreseeable future. Meanwhile, T-Mobile aims to have 18 million to 19 million customers for its broadband services by 2030. That said, the company had more than 130 million total customers in the U.S. in mid-2025, meaning mobile services revenue likely makes up the vast majority of its total sales.
Intel Stock Is 'Too Good to Ignore' as HSBC Sets a New Street-High Price Target
Intel Just Lost a Veteran Employee. It Likely Just Won a Key Catalyst for INTC Stock in the Process.
SK Hynix Stock Debuts for U.S. Investors Tomorrow. The DRAM ETF Could Be the Biggest Loser.

Meta Platforms (META) shares are inching higher on Thursday after the tech behemoth said it will invest $9 billion to set up its first-ever Canadian data center in Alberta.
The 1-gigawatt facility will be dedicated to scaling its massive artificial intelligence (AI) workload and Llama models, the company's management confirmed in a press release.
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The Erste Group recently downgraded shares of chipmaker Broadcom (AVGO) to "Hold" from "Buy." Opining that AVGO stock is trading at overvalued levels, **** yst Hans Engel said that "the potential for further price appreciation currently appears limited." However, in the same note, Engel dispelled fears about Broadcom's long-term prospects by reiterating that the company's gross margin and operating margin should remain at high levels, with revenue expected to jump 89% from the previous year to $29.4 billion.
After witnessing a drop-off, AVGO stock recovered to end the day marginally lower on July 7. Overall, valued at a market capitalization of about $1.8 trillion, shares of Broadcom are up 17% on a year-to-date (YTD) basis.
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Intel Stock Is 'Too Good to Ignore' as HSBC Sets a New Street-High Price Target

Paramount Skydance (PSKY) stock is under pressure on July 9 after Arete Research ***** yst Pierre-Marie d'Ornano downgraded the mass media company to "Sell."
D'Ornano lowered his price target on PSKY as well to a Street-low of just $2.00, suggesting an alarming 80% potential downside from its previous close.
Jeff Bezos Says 'We Don't Have a Revenue Problem' in America — Bottom Half Paying Just 3% of Taxes Means 'We Can Find 3%'
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Intel Stock Is 'Too Good to Ignore' as HSBC Sets a New Street-High Price Target

Chip giant Nvidia Corporation (NVDA) has long been one of the market's biggest darlings, grabbing headlines for its breathtaking rallies and relentless pace of innovation. But now, the stock is trading at valuation levels not seen since at least 2019, well before Nvidia became the face of the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution. But that doesn't mean the company is in trouble. Far from it, in fact. Nvidia's fundamentals remain exceptionally strong. Instead, the recent pullback reflects a shift in investor sentiment.
As the AI build-out matures, enthusiasm for the broader AI trade has cooled, with investors becoming more cautious about the pace of AI spending. At the same time, intensifying competition in the semiconductor industry and a growing search for the next high-growth AI winners have taken some of the shine off Nvidia's once-explosive stock performance. Even so, the recent pullback is far from a reason to abandon the stock. If anything, some on Wall Street believe it has created an attractive entry point.
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With a market cap of $66.1 billion, Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (APD) is a global industrial gases company that supplies atmospheric, process, and specialty gases, along with related equipment and services, to customers across the Americas, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, India, and other international markets. It serves a wide range of industries, including chemicals, manufacturing, electronics, energy, healthcare, food, and metals processing.
The Allentown, Pennsylvania-based company is set to unveil its fiscal Q3 2026 results soon. Ahead of the event, ****** ysts forecast APD to post an adjusted EPS of $3.35, a growth of 8.4% from $3.09 in the same quarter last year. It has surpassed Wall Street's bottom-line projections in three of the past four quarters while missing on another occasion.
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Valued at a market capitalization of $83.2 billion, Synopsys (SNPS) stock has underperformed the broader market in recent years. While most chip stocks have crushed index returns, SNPS stock has remained largely range-bound over the last three years.
Synopsys is the company behind the software that helps build advanced processors. Now, it is quietly stepping away from a part of its business that once mattered a great deal. At the same time, the firm is telling investors that its AI push is working better than expected. Put those two things together, and you get a company reshaping itself in real time.
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Cloudflare (NET) has emerged as one of the biggest beneficiaries of the artificial intelligence (AI) boom, with investors increasingly viewing the company as a critical player in the internet infrastructure that powers next-generation applications. As AI adoption accelerates across industries, every strategic partnership carries added weight, making Cloudflare's latest announcement particularly noteworthy.
The enthusiasm showed up on Wednesday, July 8, when NET stock rose 1.7% after Cloudflare unveiled a first-of-its-kind research pilot with OpenAI. The partnership will explore how insights from participating websites across Cloudflare's global network can help AI search engines discover and index relevant content across the open web more effectively.
Jeff Bezos Says 'We Don't Have a Revenue Problem' in America — Bottom Half Paying Just 3% of Taxes Means 'We Can Find 3%'
SpaceX Has Massive Multiyear Put Options Volume As SPCX Falls Below IPO Price
Intel Stock Is 'Too Good to Ignore' as HSBC Sets a New Street-High Price Target

Apple (AAPL) just wrote Broadcom (AVGO) a gigantic check, and it says a lot about where both companies think the next decade of technology is headed. The two companies announced a new multiyear agreement worth more than $30 billion, according to a company statement.
It calls for Broadcom to design and build custom chips and wireless components for Apple products, with more than 15 billion American-made chips expected to come out of the deal. For a company that has spent the past three years benefiting from the AI megatrend, this Apple news is a reminder that Broadcom still has a massive, profitable business making legacy parts for iPhones and other devices.
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Intel Stock Is 'Too Good to Ignore' as HSBC Sets a New Street-High Price Target

The excitement surrounding artificial intelligence (AI) stocks has tempered down again, with fears of an AI bubble resurfacing. While investors debate whether the AI trade has gone too far, Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM) (TSMC) heads into another quarterly report with exceptional momentum.
TSMC will kick off the tech sector's high-stakes earnings season with its second-quarter results on July 16. TSM stock has climbed 46% year-to-date (YTD), outperforming the broader market's gain of roughly 10% so far this year.
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SpaceX Has Massive Multiyear Put Options Volume As SPCX Falls Below IPO Price
Intel Stock Is 'Too Good to Ignore' as HSBC Sets a New Street-High Price Target

Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC) is one of the 10 Stocks Investors Are Running Away From.
Intel saw its share prices drop by 9.66 percent on Tuesday to close at $110.39 apiece, as investors resorted to profit-taking while trading sideways amid the lack of industry-related developments to boost buying appetite.
Year-to-date, the company has already jumped by 286 percent, thanks to the strong demand for semiconductors amid the artificial intelligence boom. This month alone, Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC) has seen its stock price surge by 21.7 percent.
Intel Corp.'s headquarters, the Robert Noyce Building in Santa Clara, California. Photo from Intel Corp website
Despite Tuesday's drop, Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC) currently holds a strong buy recommendation from multiple **** ysts, with HSBC alone doubling its price target for the stock to $200 from $100 previously.

Fortinet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FTNT) has surged more than 104% over the past 6 months; much of the gains came after the company reported strong fiscal Q1 2026 earnings in May. The triple-digit gains over the past 6 months make Fortinet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FTNT) one of our Best Performing Agentic AI Stocks to Buy. Fortinet's ranks among the Agentic AI stocks due to its FortiSOC + FortiAI-Assist, which is a unified cloud-delivered security operations center platform powered by agentic AI.
During the fiscal Q1 2026, the company not only topped revenue estimates by 6.68%, but the EPS of $0.82 also exceeded the consensus of $0.62. Notably, during the quarter, the company grew its total billings by 31% year-over-year to $2.09 billion, with standout performance in the Operational Technology segment, which saw billings surge over 70%. Moreover, product revenue surged 41% year-over-year to $645 million, driven by robust demand for high-performance FortiGate appliances used in AI data center deployments.
Despite the gains, recently, on June 30, HSBC downgraded the stock from Hold to Reduce and raised the price target from $98 to $102. The firm noted that the rating change is based on valuation concerns rather than fundamentals. ***** yst Bersey noted Fortinet trades at a 2026 P/E of 46.1x, in line with cybersecurity peers, despite a much slower 11.6% EPS growth rate. He noted that the mismatch makes the risk-reward unattractive at current levels. The firm also flagged a large-scale device security event as a near-term risk, potentially slowing product and billings momentum as customers scramble to ***** s exposure. Moreover, HSBC raised its target multiple to 31x from 30x, reflecting AI-led re-rating across the sector, but kept it well below the peer median of 46x.
Fortinet Inc. (NASDAQ:FTNT) provides cybersecurity and convergence of networking and security solutions worldwide.
While we acknowledge the potential of FTNT as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you're looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock.

Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) is one of the Best Software Stocks to Buy in 2026. Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) has declined around 14% over the past month. The major reason behind the decline has been the rising competition concerns from AI. ***** ysts have differing views on the company's future outlook. Overall, the Street's average 12-month price target suggests more than 11.5% upside from current levels.
On June 29, Phillip Securities downgraded Adobe to Neutral, slashing its price target to $203 from $385. The firm noted that the key concern behind the cautious rating is slowing core software growth. Phillip Securities highlighted that despite the company's early AI investments, the revenue stream is expected to stay immaterial for years. The firm added that peers are already monetizing AI more meaningfully, and it sees little room for a near-term valuation rebound in application software.
On the other hand, just a few days later, on July 2, HSBC took a more bullish view and upgraded the stock from Hold to Buy, lifting the price target from $282 to $308. The firm argued that fears about generative AI disrupting Adobe's business have gone too far. It pointed to strong fiscal Q2 results, reflecting 12.7% revenue growth and a 13.1% rise in remaining performance obligations, as evidence that customers are sticking with Adobe's ecosystem rather than using AI-native rivals.
Moreover, HSBC also raised earnings estimates for 2026-2028 by 3% – 8%, citing operating momentum and buybacks, and noted the company's AI push as complementary to its core software segment.
Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) is a provider of multimedia and digital marketing software such as Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign, among others. It also offers AI products such as Adobe Firefly and Adobe Sensei. The company was founded in 1982 and is headquartered in San Jose, California.