Nvidia shares fell about 8% in after-hours trading on Wednesday, erasing a 2.9% regular-session gain, after the New York Times reported a second relationship involving chief executive Jensen Huang and the Wall Street Journal reported the board is preparing to oust him.
The regular session had looked like relief. Nvidia closed at $173.73, up $4.84, on a day the Nasdaq 100 jumped 1.7% as CoreWeave's earnings reignited AI stocks. A Finnhub after-hours quote at 18:14 EST put the stock at $158.28, 8.9% under the close. That print sits $5.99 below the 52-week low of $164.27 set on March 30. If it held into Thursday's open, it would mark a fresh 52-week low for the world's most valuable chipmaker.
The Times reported the relationship, drawing on five people who worked at Nvidia. Powell serves as the company's vice president of healthcare and sits among roughly 60 executives reporting directly to Huang; the report described the pair being affectionate at a hotel in San Jose during Nvidia's GTC conference in March. The Journal reported the board would gather as early as Wednesday to decide Huang's future, according to people briefed on the matter. Nvidia had not replied to a request for comment when the reports landed, and Reuters said it had not been able to confirm them independently. The reports landed three days after Huang told staff in a Sunday letter that he had been unfaithful to his wife. The board opened an independent investigation the same day, retaining law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz. That probe covers Huang's earlier relationship with Alice Huang, an executive at Megaspeed, a Singapore-based data company and Nvidia customer. United States intelligence officials believe Alice Huang is a suspected Chinese intelligence asset. China has denied the espionage allegations.
Pressure has built from more than one direction since then. The affair triggered an FBI inquiry.
Republican leaders of three House committees asked Huang to appear for a private briefing, and Republican Senator Kevin Cramer urged Huang to step down on Tuesday, arguing the claims posed an unacceptable risk to national security.
Why it matters
A second allegation changes the shape of the problem. The first affair raised counterintelligence questions. A relationship with a direct report turns the matter into a workplace-governance and conflict-of-interest question for the board, where directors have far less room to stand by a chief executive. Directors had earlier backed Huang in public while the probe ran; a second allegation naming a company executive makes that backing harder to sustain.
Wall Street moved fast. Baird downgraded Nvidia to Neutral and cut its price target to $200 from $500, a 60% reduction. Morgan Stanley took Nvidia off its Top Pick list, holding the Overweight rating and a $300 target. Bank of America struck the stock from its US 1 List; Wells Fargo and Citigroup lowered their price targets earlier in the week. The stock has now fallen more than 25% since Morgan Stanley named it a Top Pick last month, and Reuters put the value erased over the past two sessions at more than $427 billion.
The split between the governance story and the business story is stark. Revenue surged 106% to $96.2 billion in the latest quarter, with revenue guidance of about $108 billion, and the earnings multiple is 11.4, against 30.4 for AMD and 16.5 for Broadcom. Wedbush analyst Dan Ives estimated Nvidia would lose about 30% of its value if Huang left. No one is publicly named to take over if Huang goes, and the flat structure routes decisions through him, leaving directors with no clear executive ready to step in.
| Level | Price | Note |
|---|---|---|
| After-hours print, 18:14 EST | $158.28 | 8.9% under the close |
| 52-week low | $164.27 | Set March 30, 2026 |
| Nov 10 close | $168.89 | Down 5.5% that day |
| Nov 11 close | $173.73 | Up 2.9% in the regular session |
| 50-day average | $217.99 | Stock 20.3% below it |
| Oct 6 high | $243.37 | 52-week high; stock 28.6% below it |
What to watch
- The board meeting: an announcement on Huang's status looks imminent, and it could land before the next two catalysts.
- November 17 earnings: Nvidia reports third-quarter results after the close, with the call expected to dwell on revenue guidance of about $108 billion.
- November 18 congressional briefing: House committee leaders want Huang in for a private briefing about his dealings with Alice Huang.
- Thursday's open: whether the after-hours level near $158 holds or the stock reclaims the $164.27 52-week low.
- Broker actions: more price-target cuts if the board moves against Huang; the $314 median target implies about 82% upside from Wednesday's close.
Key points
- Nvidia fell about 8% after hours on Wednesday after the Times reported a second Huang relationship and the Journal reported the board is preparing to oust him.
- The Times named Kimberly Powell, the company's healthcare chief, who sits among about 60 executives reporting to Huang.
- Baird cut Nvidia to Neutral with a $200 target, down from $500; Morgan Stanley dropped it from its Top Pick list.
- The stock has shed more than $427 billion across the past two sessions, per Reuters.
- Revenue rose 106% to $96.2 billion last quarter, with guidance near $108 billion; earnings land November 17.
MarketRadar take
The trade is no longer about chips. Demand has not cracked: revenue rose 106% to $96.2 billion, guidance sits at about $108 billion, and 59 of 64 brokerages still call the shares a buy or strong buy. The risk sits in the corner office, and the market is pricing it fast. On Ives's 30% estimate, the arithmetic works out to about $121.61 a share off Wednesday's $173.73 close, and about $1.26 trillion off a $4.19 trillion market value. Until the board speaks, every headline moves the stock, and the $158.28 after-hours print is the line to watch at Thursday's open.
