Figma’s Flutter: A Temporary Reprieve?

by

Shares of Figma (FIG +11.84%) performed a little jig today, bouncing back from a rather undignified tumble across the software sector. It’s a bit like watching a goblin attempt ballet – unexpected, and one hopes, not entirely catastrophic.

There wasn’t any actual news about Figma, mind you. Just the pronouncements of certain Wall Street titans, who decided, collectively, that the software rout had gone on long enough. A bit like a committee of dragons deciding a village has burned sufficiently. It rarely ends well for the villagers, or the software companies, if you follow the analogy.

As of 12:27 p.m. ET, the stock was up 13.1%, which is, in the grand scheme of things, less a triumphant ascent and more a frantic scramble up a particularly slippery slope.1

Is the Software Sell-Off Overdone?

This morning, JPMorgan Chase issued a decree stating the plunge in software stocks was an ‘opportunity,’ rather than a harbinger of doom. They encouraged investors to acquire ‘higher-quality’ stocks resistant to the looming AI apocalypse, citing Microsoft and CrowdStrike as prime examples. It’s always reassuring when someone else is willing to bet their money on surviving the robot uprising.2

Also, Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon declared the sell-off “overdone” and “too broad.” A statement that, one suspects, carries the weight of several small nations’ GDPs. It’s a bit like a wizard saying, “Honestly, all this fire and brimstone is getting a bit much.”

These pronouncements, naturally, gave software stocks a lift, including Figma. Figma isn’t quite the granite-solid investment that Microsoft or CrowdStrike represent—it’s more like a beautifully crafted glass sculpture, impressive, but prone to shattering if someone sneezes in its general direction. But, having plummeted more than 85% at one point, investors seem to perceive it as a ‘buying opportunity.’ A bit like picking up the pieces after the glass sculpture has shattered, hoping you can glue it back together and pass it off as ‘rustic chic.’

Loading widget...

What’s Next for Figma

As a design software company, Figma faces the inevitable question: will AI disrupt its business? So far, there’s no evidence that tools like Claude Cowork are staging a hostile takeover. Though, one can’t help but wonder if these AI entities are simply biding their time, quietly infiltrating the design process, waiting for the opportune moment to unleash a wave of algorithmically generated masterpieces…or, more likely, an endless stream of aesthetically questionable clip art.

Figma has delivered strong earnings reports since its IPO last July. The company will report fourth-quarter earnings on Feb. 18, and the stock is likely to react accordingly. Analysts are expecting $293.2 million in revenue and adjusted earnings per share of $0.06. Investors will pore over the report, not just for the numbers, but for any indication of how AI competition is impacting the business. Which, let’s be honest, is often more interesting than the numbers themselves.3


1 The slope, in this case, being the precarious cliff face of investor sentiment. A particularly unstable geological formation.
2 The quality of these stocks, of course, being entirely subjective. And often based on little more than wishful thinking and a healthy dose of denial.
3 Numbers tell you what happened. Context tells you why. And a good story explains how it all went horribly, wonderfully wrong.

Read More

2026-02-10 21:22