Why Nvidia Stock Dropped to End the Week

Investors may have thought they missed out after Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) shares popped yesterday from its fiscal 2026 first-quarter earnings report. But what a difference a day makes. Anyone who regretted missing yesterday's gains has another chance.

Nvidia stock ended Friday's session down 2.9%, which is about in line with where it closed prior to the earnings pop yesterday. There were good reasons for both days' moves.

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Nvidia earnings were strong

The advanced semiconductor chip and artificial intelligence (AI) software company exceeded expectations for fiscal Q1 sales with a record $44.1 billion in revenue. The results had a bit of an asterisk, though. Restrictions on exports of its H20 chip into China led it to take a $4.5 billion charge in the quarter.

China is a meaningful market for Nvidia as sales represented 13% of total revenue last year. The company is planning for more lost sales, too. Fiscal Q2 guidance included the loss of another $8 billion in H20 sales. Yet management still thinks record quarterly earnings are likely in the current quarter. With the business humming on all cylinders other than in China, investors got excited to jump into the stock yesterday.

China risks still weigh on Nvidia stock

But China played a big role in today's stock decline too. President Trump indicated that trade tensions were reaccelerating as he claimed China violated agreements made earlier this month in Geneva.

In the quarterly call for investors, CEO Jensen Huang noted the impact a loss of the China market represented. He stated, "Today, however, the $50 billion China market is effectively closed to U.S. industry. The H20 export ban ended our Hopper Data Center business in China."

With tensions flaring up again this morning, investors might be thinking that the market may not be opening back up any time soon. That had sellers outnumbering buyers today. Nvidia is still growing, though. It has many other irons in the fire. It also has counted China sales out for now. That could even lead to further future upside in the stock, too.

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Howard Smith has positions in Nvidia. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.