Nvidia CEO search sends shares down 8.62% after hours

Marcus Bennett

At 7:59 p.m. ET on Wednesday, November 11, 2026, Nvidia shares traded at $158.76, down $14.97, or 8.62%, from the $173.73 regular-session close that day. The move put the stock below its 52-week low of $164.27. Nvidia had gained $4.84, or 2.87%, during regular trading before the after-hours fall.

Bloomberg reported that evening that Nvidia's board was working with an outside firm to identify possible replacements for CEO Jensen Huang. Directors were considering a temporary chief while they searched for a permanent successor. No leadership change had been announced, and Nvidia had not returned requests for comment.

The report followed a New York Times report of a second affair involving Huang and Kimberly Powell, a vice president of healthcare at Nvidia. Separate reporting said the board was preparing to dismiss Huang. Board members favored Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress as interim CEO if Huang left. The board had also briefed the White House, according to a senior administration official.

The succession process

Nvidia's own statements did not indicate a succession decision. On November 8, 2026, the board opened an investigation into reports that Huang had been the target of a foreign intelligence effort. It said it had no reason to believe national security or company secrets had been compromised. The board also stated: “confidence in Jensen and his leadership team.”

On November 10, 2026, the independent directors retained former acting U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim and his firm, Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, to run the probe. In a memo to employees, Huang said he supported the investigation and “will cooperate fully.”

D.A. Davidson's Gil Luria said an immediate removal would be difficult because Nvidia lacked a succession plan. A board without a designated successor must hire a search firm and appoint a temporary leader, a process that usually takes months at a company of Nvidia's scale.

What does an interim CEO change for investors?

It changes who explains the numbers and sets direction while the board conducts its search. An interim chief usually preserves strategy and avoids major new commitments. Kress already manages Nvidia's guidance, including third-quarter revenue of $108.0 billion, plus or minus 2%.

If Kress became interim CEO, the executive who sets the forecast would also explain it to investors, concentrating financial communication in the same hands during the leadership search.

The reported consideration of Apple hardware chief Johny Srouji shows that the board may look beyond its own management. The White House briefing gives the matter national weight. Neither report confirms that either candidate will be appointed.

For investors, the practical issue is continuity without Huang. Nvidia faces three linked risks:

• A debate over slowing artificial-intelligence spending
• The risk of losing its founder
• A board process with no stated timetable

An interim appointment could stabilize command, but it would not resolve those three questions.

The market reaction

Nvidia shares were already falling before the succession report. They had lost 13.19% over one week and 23.24% over one month. In after-hours trading, the stock touched $156.20 at about 5:25 p.m. ET, roughly 10.1% below the close.

Nvidia ended the regular session with a market value of $4.20 trillion. Applying its 24.15 billion shares to the $158.76 after-hours price produced an estimated value of $3.83 trillion. That difference represented about $362 billion in lost market value.

After-hours liquidity was thin, so the regular opening at 9:30 a.m. ET on November 12, 2026, would provide the first regular-session price after the succession report.

The November 17 test

A brokerage that downgraded Nvidia on November 11 still said demand for the company's chips exceeded supply, even as the succession report weighed on the stock. The succession reporting did not change orders, products, or $279.0 billion in supply commitments. That operating data continued to support Nvidia's underlying semiconductor business.

Nvidia scheduled its third-quarter report for Tuesday, November 17, with the call at 5 p.m. ET. Three details will carry the most information:

• Who leads the call
• Whether the $108.0 billion revenue forecast holds
• Whether the board addresses leadership directly

A close below the $156.20 after-hours low in the days after November 17 would deepen concern. If another affair were discovered, or if Huang joined a competitor, the situation would become more disruptive for NVDA shares.