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VALERO ENERGY CORP : JEFFERIES CUTS TARGET PRICE TO $394 FROM $401

By Doug Busch Shopify is no longer a pandemic-era growth story that simply failed to slow down. It is compounding at a pace few software platforms its size still manage. In the second quarter of 2026, sales on its platform rose 32%. That was the fifth straight quarter of growth exceeding 30%. Merchants are also using more of Shopify's own tools, from payments to Shop Pay, and new channels like AI shopping agents are starting to increase demand. The simple bull case is that the stock already commands a huge share of independent online commerce, and that position should become more valuable as more buying moves through its checkout. A rule of market mechanics is that the vast majority of an individual security's gain is driven by its underlying sector. Within technology, software has staged a robust recovery, joining semiconductors to power the broader sector higher. The iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF has maintained an upward trajectory since its mid-April lows, though the advance from $74 to $112 has been choppy as bulls repeatedly stepped in to defend when necessary. Breadth across large-cap software has expanded significantly, with 24 constituents surging over 20% over the past three months. During that same three-month window, Shopify generated outstanding relative strength, advancing 36%, more than doubling the IGV's 17% gain over the same period. Expect the stock's outperformance to persist as software momentum broadens. Let's examine the daily and monthly charts to outline the technical drivers behind this thesis. Looking at the daily chart, the ratio chart against the IGV shows persistent outperformance extending back to mid-May. The stock is riding an eight-session winning streak, during which price action cleared a double-bottom-with-handle pivot at $151.39. Within this broader base, the stock recorded a bullish golden cross in late August and successfully filled its Sept. 10 price gap, tracing back to its Aug. 4 session, the day before a powerful earnings reaction sent the stock surging 17% hi