What happened
Shares of Splunk (NASDAQ: SPLK) fell 14.2% last month, according to data provided by S&P Global Market Intelligence, as some investors sold off tech stocks following months of gains in the sector.
So what
Splunk's stock was up by as much as 50% this year until the very beginning of September, when investors quickly turned on tech stocks and began selling shares. The rapid sell-off of technology stocks pushed Splunk's share price down in the first few days of September and they stayed down for the rest of the month.
Image source: Getty Images.
It's unusual for a company's share price to drop so dramatically in a month without any company-specific news causing investors to sell their shares, but in this case, investors across most of the tech sector were dumping shares to cash in on the massive gains techs stocks have made in the months leading up to September.
Some companies saw their share prices drop dramatically in early September and then bounce back, but investors didn't rush back to Splunk's shares and the company's stock ended the month down 14%.
Now what
The stock market has been anything but predictable lately, and Splunk's share price plunge last month is proof of that. Investors can likely expect more share price swings from the company's stock, and in the market in general, even if there isn't any company-specific news driving the changes. Investors have been reacting to news about the presidential election, economic stimulus negotiations, the U.S. recession, and the pandemic, which have been more than enough to cause increased volatility in the market.
Fortunately for Splunk investors, the company's stock has gained 10.8% since the beginning of October, pushing the stock up 39% since the beginning of this year.
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Chris Neiger has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Splunk. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
