Investors piled a record sum into a leveraged semiconductor ETF last week. Things didn’t work out.
Published . Updated .
Traders making bullish bets on chip stocks are getting walloped this month, as renewed fears emerged about investment returns on the buildout of artificial intelligence.
Directly affected
- BLSH Bullish-17.0%
Named in this report.
Indirectly affected
- NVDA NVIDIA+0.6%
Chip makers and their suppliers move when export rules or Taiwan risk changes
- TSM Taiwan Semiconductor-1.5%
The main advanced-chip manufacturer sits in Taiwan
- ASML ASML-7.1%
Chipmaking-equipment sales follow export rules
- AVGO Broadcom-10.6%
Chip makers and their suppliers move when export rules or Taiwan risk changes
- AMD AMD-1.6%
Chip makers and their suppliers move when export rules or Taiwan risk changes
- AMAT Applied Materials-12.6%
Chip-equipment makers feel export controls
- LRCX Lam Research-15.9%
Chip-equipment makers feel export controls
- SMH VanEck Semiconductor-8.0%
A fund of semiconductor companies
- SOXX iShares Semiconductor-9.8%
A fund of semiconductor companies
- QQQ Invesco QQQ
Big tech moves with chip-supply risk
Price reaction, T-5 to T+3
| Ticker | T-5 | T-3 | T-1 | T0 | T+1 | T+2 | T+3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BLSH | -2.70% | +5.57% | base | after close | after close | after close | after close |
| NVDA | +2.87% | +5.16% | base | after close | after close | after close | after close |
| TSM | +0.44% | +3.20% | base | after close | after close | after close | after close |
| ASML | +4.78% | +6.70% | base | after close | after close | after close | after close |
| AVGO | +4.01% | +5.01% | base | after close | after close | after close | after close |
| AMD | +4.06% | +6.91% | base | after close | after close | after close | after close |
| AMAT | +9.45% | +8.32% | base | after close | after close | after close | after close |
| LRCX | +18.23% | +13.47% | base | after close | after close | after close | after close |
| SMH | +4.02% | +5.58% | base | after close | after close | after close | after close |
| SOXX | +4.87% | +6.61% | base | after close | after close | after close | after close |
| QQQ | +2.00% | +2.99% | base | after close | after close | after close | after close |
Closing-price change versus T-1, the last close before the story. T0 to T+3 fill in after each market close. Prices: Alpaca IEX.
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Traders making bullish bets on chip stocks are getting walloped this month, as renewed fears emerged about investment returns on the buildout of artificial intelligence.
Source: MarketWatch
Semiconductors
| Company | When | Move | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| AMAT | three days earlier | +8.32% | final price |
| AMAT | five days earlier | +9.45% | final price |
| AMD | three days earlier | +6.91% | final price |
| AMD | five days earlier | +4.06% | final price |
| ASML | three days earlier | +6.70% | final price |
| ASML | five days earlier | +4.78% | final price |
| AVGO | three days earlier | +5.01% | final price |
| AVGO | five days earlier | +4.01% | final price |
| BLSH | three days earlier | +5.57% | final price |
| BLSH | five days earlier | -2.70% | final price |
| LRCX | three days earlier | +13.47% | final price |
| LRCX | five days earlier | +18.23% | final price |
| NVDA | three days earlier | +5.16% | final price |
| NVDA | five days earlier | +2.87% | final price |
| QQQ | three days earlier | +2.99% | final price |
| QQQ | five days earlier | +2.00% | final price |
| SMH | three days earlier | +5.58% | final price |
| SMH | five days earlier | +4.02% | final price |
| SOXX | three days earlier | +6.61% | final price |
| SOXX | five days earlier | +4.87% | final price |
| TSM | three days earlier | +3.20% | final price |
| TSM | five days earlier | +0.44% | final price |
Congressional trades in the stocks in this story
- Rep. Rohit Khanna bought Nvidia (NVDA) (held by a dependent child), worth $1,001 - $15,000 on 23 Sep 2026. That is 30 days before publication. Filed 7 Oct 2026. View the filing.
- Rep. Rohit Khanna sold Nvidia (NVDA) (held by a spouse), worth $1,001 - $15,000 on 4 Sep 2026. That is 49 days before publication. Filed 7 Oct 2026. View the filing.
- Rep. Daniel Meuser sold Nvidia (NVDA) (held by a spouse), worth $1,001 - $15,000 on 31 Aug 2026. That is 53 days before publication. Filed 14 Oct 2026. View the filing.
- Rep. Gilbert Cisneros bought Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM), worth $1,001 - $15,000 on 22 Sep 2026. That is 31 days before publication. Filed 12 Oct 2026. View the filing.
- Rep. Michael T. McCaul sold Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM) (held by a spouse), worth $1,001 - $15,000 on 25 Aug 2026. That is 59 days before publication. Filed 14 Oct 2026. View the filing.
- Rep. Richard W. Allen bought Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM) (held by a spouse), worth $1,001 - $15,000 on 12 Aug 2026. That is 72 days before publication. Filed 22 Sep 2026. View the filing.
- Rep. Michael T. McCaul bought Asml Holding (ASML) (held by a spouse), worth $50,001 - $100,000 on 7 Aug 2026. That is 77 days before publication. Filed 14 Oct 2026. View the filing.
- Rep. Rohit Khanna sold Broadcom (AVGO) (held by a spouse), worth $1,001 - $15,000 on 25 Sep 2026. That is 28 days before publication. Filed 7 Oct 2026. View the filing.
- Rep. Rohit Khanna sold Broadcom (AVGO) (held by a dependent child), worth $15,001 - $50,000 on 23 Sep 2026. That is 30 days before publication. Filed 7 Oct 2026. View the filing.
- Rep. Gilbert Cisneros sold Broadcom (AVGO), worth $1,001 - $15,000 on 16 Sep 2026. That is 37 days before publication. Filed 12 Oct 2026. View the filing.
- Rep. Rohit Khanna bought Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) (held by a spouse), worth $1,001 - $15,000 on 4 Sep 2026. That is 49 days before publication. Filed 7 Oct 2026. View the filing.
- Rep. Gilbert Cisneros sold Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), worth $1,001 - $15,000 on 18 Aug 2026. That is 66 days before publication. Filed 10 Sep 2026. View the filing.
Public disclosure filings, not a recommendation. The filing link is the source document. News use of these reports still sits under 5 U.S.C. § 13107(c).
How solid the semiconductors case looks
12 out of 100
“Investors piled a record sum into a leveraged semiconductor ETF last week. Things didn’t work out.” scores 12 out of 100. The score uses 1 sources.