Qualcomm shares dropped 9% on Thursday after the chipmaker released weak guidance for the current quarter. The company beat fourth-quarter earnings estimates but projected first-quarter adjusted earnings between $2.15 and $2.35 per share, below the Wall Street consensus of $2.27 per share. First-quarter revenue is expected to range from $10.4 billion to $11.2 billion, compared to analyst estimates of $10.48 billion.
The selloff extended to other chip stocks. AMD, Micron, Arm, and Intel all declined Thursday. Semiconductor peers faced pressure from post-election concerns about a potential data center slowdown and Democratic plans for artificial intelligence regulation.
Qualcomm's handset chip sales fell 26% to $5.14 billion in the quarter, missing the $5.21 billion StreetAccount estimate even after the company raised prices in September. Rising memory costs have forced price increases for smartphones and reduced demand.
CEO Cristiano Amon attributed the shortfall to supply constraints rather than weak demand. "We don't have a demand issue; it's a supply issue," Amon said. "If I had more supply, I would probably be doing better."