AI & Quantum Opportunities After Tech Sell-Off: 2 Stocks for April

Global technology stocks will enter April 2026 under significant pressure, not from weak fundamentals but from macroeconomic and geopolitical shocks. The most important catalyst has been the 2026 Iran war, which triggered a surge in oil prices, inflation fears and global market volatility, leading to a broad sell-off in technology and semiconductor stocks. The conflict has disrupted energy markets and supply chains, particularly due to the risks to the Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint for oil and industrial supply routes, affecting semiconductor production and technology infrastructure worldwide.

Despite these near-term pressures, artificial intelligence and quantum computing remain among the most important long-term structural technology trends. This article discusses two technology stocks to buy in April 2026, NVIDIA NVDA and International Business Machines IBM, which provide exposure to artificial intelligence and quantum computing, respectively.

Energy Costs, AI Infrastructure and Market Valuations

The impact is especially pronounced in artificial intelligence, where large-scale models rely on highly energy-intensive infrastructure. Reuters, citing S&P Global estimates, notes that rising power costs could pressure returns on the hundreds of billions being deployed into the AI ecosystem. At the same time, the broader technology sell-off may prove more persistent than prior cyclical pullbacks. As highlighted by Axios, rising oil prices, interest-rate uncertainty and heavy AI capital spending are creating structural pressure on Big Tech valuations.

Quantum Computing and Risk-Off Sentiment

Quantum computing companies, even though currently in the early commercialization cycle, are also affected by tighter funding conditions and risk-off sentiment, as investors shift away from long-duration, high-capex technology themes during periods of geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainty.

Long-Term Structural Growth Remains Intact

The long-term case for artificial intelligence and quantum computing remains strong. Large technology companies are still increasing their capital spending on AI infrastructure, highlighting how important AI has become for businesses, governments and national competitiveness. At the same time, quantum computing is increasingly seen as a strategic technology, especially for cryptography, defense and advanced computing, which is likely to support continued government and private sector funding.

From an investment perspective, the current market environment looks more like a valuation reset rather than a breakdown in the long-term growth story. Many market researchers believe that the recent sell-off is creating selective buying opportunities in high-growth technology sectors. In this environment, AI and quantum stocks still offer strong long-term upside potential, supported by structural demand, government support and increasing real-world applications, even though short-term performance may remain influenced by geopolitical events and macroeconomic uncertainty.

NVDA-IBM YTD Stock Performances

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2 AI and Quantum Stocks to Buy in April 2026

NVIDIA: It remains the dominant supplier of GPUs used to train large AI models, making it the core infrastructure provider of the AI economy. Demand for its data-center chips continues to surge and AI workloads remain heavily dependent on NVIDIA hardware and software ecosystems. Despite a stock correction in 2026 affected by geopolitical risks and concerns about AI spending returns, NVIDIA still maintains strong margins and earnings expectations and we view the valuation reset as a buying opportunity.

NVIDIA currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). Despite the year-to-date 11.4% dip in share price, the short-term price targets offered by 47 analysts represent an increase of 63.2% from the last closing price of $165.17. In fiscal 2027 (ending Jan 2027), NVDA is expected to report earnings growth of 66.9% on revenue growth of 63.1%.

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IBM: It has already generated more than $1 billion in cumulative quantum-related revenues, indicating early commercialization progress compared to most quantum peers, which remain largely pre-profit. Its strength lies in a full-stack ecosystem including quantum hardware, Qiskit software and enterprise partnerships.

IBM allows investors to gain exposure to quantum computing through a diversified and profitable business model rather than relying on a pure-play quantum company. This is particularly relevant at the moment, as higher interest rates, geopolitical uncertainty and risk-off market sentiment have made investors more cautious toward early-stage, high-cash-burn, speculative quantum pure-plays.

IBM currently holds a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). Despite the year-to-date 19.9% dip in share price, the short-term price targets offered by 21 analysts represent an increase of 32.3% from the last closing price of $237.25. In 2026, IBM is expected to report earnings growth of 6.7% on revenue growth of 5.5%.

You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

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