Broadcom, NetApp and Hewlett Packard Enterprise all topped estimates and raised guidance, then fell. Snowflake did the opposite on a similar setup, exposing how little room the market is giving anything short of an exceptional print.
Three large technology names reported in the same 24-hour window this week, and all three beat estimates and raised guidance, and all three traded lower afterward. NetApp posted earnings per share of $2.58 against a $2.12 estimate and revenue of $2.03 billion against $1.84 billion expected, raising its full-year guidance above consensus, yet fell in extended trading. Hewlett Packard Enterprise reported earnings per share of $1.11 versus $0.93 expected and revenue of $12.21 billion versus $11.91 billion expected, also raising guidance, and also fell. Broadcom's own beat-and-raise quarter met a similar reception.
Snowflake's print, reported the same week, went the other way: a double beat with raised guidance and a sharp rally.
The contrast raises a specific question: what did Snowflake's guidance or commentary contain that Broadcom's, NetApp's and HPE's did not, at a moment when the market is pricing anything less than an exceptional AI-linked beat as a disappointment. That's the live question for this earnings season.