SoftBank Group shares extended a sharp rally for a second day on Friday as strong earnings from AI chip leader Nvidia lifted investor interest in artificial intelligence stocks.
The Japanese tech investor climbed nearly 12% in Friday trading after ending Thursday with a 20% gain. Over two sessions, SoftBank added more than $61 billion in market value.
A major driver behind the rally is Arm Holdings, the British chip designer in which SoftBank owns a controlling stake. Arm shares surged more than 16% overnight after rising over 15% in the previous session.
The move highlights how closely SoftBank’s stock tracks the performance of its key holdings, especially companies tied to the AI boom.
“SoftBank Group’s share price is simply reflecting the moves of some of its stake holdings, including Arm, whose share price has been surging, and OpenAI which may file for an IPO in the coming weeks,” said Vey Sern Ling, senior equity advisor at UBP, in comments to CNBC.
The recent jump in Nvidia shares has helped fuel optimism across the AI sector. Investors see strong demand ahead for chips, data centers, and the hardware needed to run AI models.
That backdrop has lifted companies linked to AI infrastructure, and SoftBank sits near the center of that story.
SoftBank Gains on Arm Strength, but Shareholder Value Questions Remain
Arm plays a key role in the market. Its chip designs power a wide range of devices, from smartphones to servers. The company has also gained attention for its growing role in AI servers and data centers that run Nvidia-powered systems.
Because SoftBank owns a majority stake in Arm, gains in Arm stock often feed into stronger sentiment around SoftBank shares.
Still, some analysts warn that the connection between asset value and shareholder returns is not always straightforward.
Holding companies like SoftBank often trade at a discount to the value of the businesses they own. Investors call this the “holding company discount.” It reflects the view that shareholders may not fully benefit from the market value of underlying assets.
Ling pointed to this issue when discussing SoftBank’s recent surge.
“Net asset value or sum-of-the-parts valuations usually warrant a significant discount or cautiousness as shareholders of the holding company rarely receive the full value of the underlying assets,” he said.
In simple terms, even if Arm or OpenAI gain value, SoftBank shareholders may not capture every dollar of that increase in the company’s share price.
OpenAI remains another major reason investors are watching SoftBank.
SoftBank’s AI Bet Pays Off as OpenAI IPO Buzz Fuels Investor Optimism
The Japanese group has invested heavily in the company behind ChatGPT and has become one of its largest financial backers. SoftBank has poured more than $30 billion into OpenAI and reported roughly $45 billion in related gains for the fiscal year that ended in March.
Speculation around a possible OpenAI public offering has added another layer of excitement for investors.
If OpenAI moves ahead with an IPO in the coming weeks, it could create a new path for SoftBank to unlock value from one of its biggest AI bets.
Yet analysts say expectations should remain measured. A future IPO could boost sentiment, but questions remain around timing, valuation, and how much value would flow back to SoftBank shareholders.
For many investors, SoftBank offers a broad way to gain exposure to several fast-growing parts of the AI market through a single stock.
That includes Arm’s role in data center processors and SoftBank’s deep ties to OpenAI.
“For investors, SoftBank is a compelling way to gain exposure to the data center CPU boom, which is the fastest growing segment in AI semis, and early exposure to the OpenAI IPO,” said Rolf Bulk, head of semiconductor and infrastructure at Futurum Group.
The latest rally shows how quickly investor sentiment can shift around AI-linked companies. Nvidia’s results reinforced the belief that spending on AI systems, chips, and data centers will stay strong.
For SoftBank, that momentum has translated into a powerful stock move. Whether the rally holds may depend on the next phase of growth in AI infrastructure, Arm’s performance, and the future path of OpenAI.
