Amazon sheds over $450 billion in value in historic stock slide amid AI vows

Vlad Schepkov

Wed, February 18, 2026 at 4:07 AM GMT+9 1 min read

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Investing.com – Amazon shares fluctuated on Tuesday as the stock attempted to recover from a historic decline that has erased approximately $450 billion in market value.

If the stock closes negative today, it would mark a 10th consecutive day of losses, matching the company’s longest losing streak on record set in 1997. The current nine-day slide represents the worst streak since 2006.

Amazon shares have dropped roughly 18% since February 2, as investors question the company’s artificial intelligence spending plans.

The sell-off began following Amazon’s fourth-quarter earnings report released earlier this month. The company announced it expects to spend $200 billion in capital expenditures this year, representing a nearly 60% increase from last year and exceeding Wall Street’s forecast by more than $50 billion.

Most of this spending will be directed toward AI-related initiatives, which require substantial infrastructure investments including data centers, chips, and networking equipment. Investors have expressed growing concern about large technology companies making substantial AI investments that could potentially reduce or eliminate free cash flows.

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy defended the massive expenditure during an analyst conference call, stating he is confident it will “yield strong returns on invested capital.”

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