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Saxo Investor Radar, Oct 2026: Singapore investors bought Alphabet and DBS, but sold Microsoft
Nvidia remained a favourite, but October brought some surprises. Buying strengthened across selected AI stocks and Singapore banks, while Tesla and Microsoft saw greater selling pressure. Beyond equities, investors also appeared to favour shorter-term Treasury exposure.
Here's where investor behaviour changed most noticeably.
1. Buying the AI dip? Investors become more selective
AI remained firmly on investors' radar, but buying interest wasn't limited to the familiar semiconductor giants. Cloud infrastructure, memory and storage stocks also attracted stronger buying than in previous months.
Stock | October buying | Shift vs previous 3 months | What's driving interest? |
Alphabet (GOOGL) | 86% buys | +11 pp | Shares tumbled after earnings amid concerns over AI spending. Buying strengthened during a volatile month, possibly after the earnings dip. |
Nvidia (NVDA) | 65% buys | +11 pp | Investors continued buying despite questions over AI valuations and the sustainability of infrastructure spending. |
CoreWeave (CRWV) | 80% buys | +17 pp | Buying strengthened despite a sharp selloff driven by concerns over its debt-funded AI expansion and refinancing risks. |
Cerebras (CBRS) | 82% buys | +16 pp | Interest grew amid volatility surrounding AI chip competition, customer concentration and post-IPO share supply. |
SK hynix (ADR) | 77% buys | +11 pp | Strong earnings and booming demand for high-bandwidth memory kept the AI memory trade in focus. |
Seagate (STX) | 71% buys | +20 pp | One of the sharpest buying shifts as AI-driven data storage demand attracted attention beyond chips. |
The takeaway: Investors weren't abandoning AI. They were becoming more selective, with stronger buying across parts of the AI infrastructure and memory value chains, even as financing and valuation risks intensified.
2. Singapore banks: Buying the pullback?
October's volatility brought renewed attention to Singapore banks. Despite concerns over interest margins, earnings and valuations, buying became considerably stronger than in the preceding three months.
Stock | Change in trading clients vs September | October buying | Shift vs previous 3 months | What's driving interest? |
DBS (D05) | +191% | 87% buys | +16 pp | Buying intensified amid the banking-sector pullback, with dividends and earnings resilience remaining attractive. |
OCBC (O39) | +159% | 88% buys | +15 pp | Stronger buying despite concerns over net interest margins and the sector's earnings outlook. |
The takeaway: While US technology remained in focus, Singapore banks saw a meaningful increase in participation and buying appetite. Was October's weakness an opportunity for income-focused investors?
3. Heading for the exit? Where selling intensified
Not every technology favourite enjoyed stronger buying. Some established names saw a notable shift towards selling as investors reassessed valuations, earnings and future returns on AI spending.
Stock | October selling | Shift vs previous 3 months | What's driving interest? |
Tesla (TSLA) | 63% sells | +22 pp | Selling intensified amid questions over automotive growth, valuations and the execution of its autonomy ambitions. |
Microsoft (MSFT) | 77% sells | +13 pp | Rising AI capital expenditure and questions about monetisation weighed on sentiment despite strong cloud demand. |
Oracle (ORCL) | 43% sells | +14 pp | Selling increased relative to recent months as investors questioned AI infrastructure financing and cash-flow requirements. |
The takeaway: AI exposure was not uniformly popular. Investors appeared more cautious about companies facing large spending commitments and uncertainty over the timing of returns.
4. Beyond AI: The unexpected movers
Healthcare, Southeast Asian technology, quantum computing and Treasury bonds also saw some interesting changes in investor behaviour.
Stock / ETF | October trading signal | What's driving interest? |
Moderna (MRNA) | Trading activity +89% vs September; 54% sells | Shares plunged following promising cancer-vaccine results, as investors reassessed expectations after an earlier rally. The volatility sparked a sharp increase in trading activity. |
Sea Limited (SE) | Trading clients +91%; 74% buys, up 35 pp | Buying appetite strengthened sharply for the Southeast Asian e-commerce, gaming and fintech company. |
Eli Lilly (LLY) | 61% sells, up 27 pp | Selling intensified despite robust obesity-drug demand and an improved revenue outlook. |
D-Wave Quantum (QBTS) | Trading clients +47%; 81% buys | Quantum computing continued to attract speculative interest, even as commercialisation timelines and valuations remained uncertain. |
iShares USD Treasury Bond 0–1yr UCITS ETF | Trading clients +56%; 75% buys, up 12 pp | Short-term US Treasuries attracted stronger buying as investors sought income with relatively limited interest-rate sensitivity. |
iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) | Trading clients −10%; buy share down 22 pp | Interest in longer-duration bonds weakened amid inflation uncertainty and volatile bond yields. |
The takeaway: Beyond individual stocks, investors showed a greater preference for short-term Treasury exposure over long-duration bonds. Meanwhile, healthcare and emerging technology stocks generated fresh trading opportunities and volatility.