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Software stocks outperformed chips in August, history flags tougher Sept.
The iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF rose more than 16% in August, while the iShares Semiconductor ETF gained about 1%, and Yahoo Finance’s historical scan suggests software’s typical strength fades after Sept. 15.
Software and chip stocks diverged sharply in August, with software shares continuing to climb as semiconductors rolled over in the back half of the month, according to a Yahoo Finance Chart of the Day.
In the ETF data, the iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF (IGV) surged more than 16% in August, while the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) finished up about 1%. The S&P 500 gained just over 2.5% over the month.
The pattern was visible across large software and semiconductors names. Atlassian shares nearly doubled in August, Palantir rose more than 50%, and Salesforce jumped more than 40%, while, starting Aug. 17, 58 of 61 semiconductor stocks in a Yahoo Finance basket fell, cutting roughly $1.1 trillion from the group’s market value.
Looking ahead, Yahoo Finance examined 12 prior August rallies for software and found software historically held up through Sept. 15 with a median gain of about 1%, while semiconductors were already down roughly 1% by then. From Sept. 15 to month-end, median software returns fell about 1%, the S&P 500 dropped nearly 2%, and semiconductors slid about 3.5%, with the outlet adding the small sample limits forecasting value.
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