Tech Markets – Q1-25: hedge in May, and go away?

On April 9th, a 90-day pause in reciprocal tariffs (excluding China) propelled the Nasdaq up 12.2%, marking its largest one-day gain since January 2001 and signaling the start of a rapid V-shaped recovery. With valuations now at or above pre-Liberation levels, we are reassessing our view on Big Tech. The first part of this paper examines the performance of the Magnificent 7 and our views on Nasdaq valuations amid an increasingly uncertain macroeconomic environment. We question whether the market has surged too far too quickly and if this enthusiasm warrants a more cautious perspective.The second part focuses on private equity deals and shows that all vertical segments got off to a good start in 2025 (with the exception of AutoTech and Grid & Utility), with amounts raised in Q1-25 at least equal to and often exceeding amounts raised in Q4-24 and also in Q1-24. AI really does stand out, having raised $68bn in Q1-25 compared with $16bn over the same period in 2024 (+310%). However, this large sum was chiefly attributable to the $40bn raised by OpenAI at the end of March 2025, for what amounted to a more mixed performance in Q1-25…Finally, in our third part, we discuss the rise in demand for low-carbon electricity as a catalyst for substantial acceleration in nuclear energy production capabilities worldwide (particularly fourth-generation reactors). This global demand is already driving a significant wave of investments from both private and public investors. The transition to low-carbon electricity is clearly moving beyond environmental imperatives and into the realm of national sovereignty. The momentum for nuclear energy is clear, and we propose a basket of 13 stocks to capitalize on this thematic over a medium-term horizon…