Intel's (INTC) "Hold" Rating Reaffirmed at TD Cowen

Key Points

• TD Cowen reaffirmed its Hold rating on Intel and set a $115 price target, implying 7.3% downside from the prior close. The broader analyst consensus is also Hold, with an average target of $108.49.
• Intel reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with earnings of $0.42 per share versus the $0.21 consensus and revenue of $16.13 billion versus $14.43 billion expected; revenue rose 25.2% year over year.
• CEO Lip-Bu Tan purchased approximately $10 million of Intel shares, while institutional investors own 64.53% of the company. Despite strong reported demand and strategic interest in AI and foundry operations, analysts remain focused on the need for stronger product-revenue growth.

Intel (NASDAQ:INTC - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "hold" rating reaffirmed by stock analysts at TD Cowen in a research report issued on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $115.00 target price on the chip maker's stock. TD Cowen's price objective suggests a potential downside of 7.30% from the stock's previous close.

Several other research firms also recently commented on INTC. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Intel from $120.00 to $110.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 24th. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Intel from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Intel from $75.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Intel in a report on Thursday, June 11th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price target on Intel from $77.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating, twenty-six have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Intel currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $108.49.

Intel Stock Performance

INTC traded up $1.45 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $124.05. The company's stock had a trading volume of 28,558,555 shares, compared to its average volume of 117,297,523. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.60. The firm has a market cap of $625.71 billion, a PE ratio of -58.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 13.22 and a beta of 2.22. The company's 50-day moving average is $97.90 and its 200-day moving average is $93.85. Intel has a 52 week low of $31.21 and a 52 week high of $142.35.

Intel (NASDAQ:INTC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The chip maker reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $16.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.43 billion. Intel had a positive return on equity of 2.62% and a negative net margin of 19.79%.Intel's revenue was up 25.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.10) earnings per share. Intel has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.380-0.380 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Intel will post 1.04 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Lip Bu Tan bought 105,263 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $95.00 per share, for a total transaction of $9,999,985.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 1,314,669 shares in the company, valued at approximately $124,893,555. This trade represents a 8.70% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.05% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Intel

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of INTC. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Intel by 1.2% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 216,849,675 shares of the chip maker's stock valued at $30,278,720,000 after buying an additional 2,528,657 shares during the last quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA acquired a new stake in Intel during the 2nd quarter worth about $10,507,291,000. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in Intel by 35.7% during the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 31,724,362 shares of the chip maker's stock worth $4,429,673,000 after acquiring an additional 8,342,514 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in Intel during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $4,096,110,000. Finally, Capital World Investors grew its position in shares of Intel by 20.3% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 104,060,268 shares of the chip maker's stock valued at $3,839,833,000 after purchasing an additional 17,557,147 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.53% of the company's stock.

Intel News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Intel this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Intel’s underlying demand narrative remains supportive: CEO Lip-Bu Tan reportedly said the company can supply only about half of customer CPU demand, suggesting strong interest in its processors and potential revenue upside if production expands. Intel CPU demand article
• Positive Sentiment: Intel continues to receive attention for its AI and foundry turnaround prospects, including possible outside customers for its next-generation manufacturing process and the potential strategic value of its Ohio site. These developments remain prospective rather than confirmed catalysts. Intel foundry customer article
• Neutral Sentiment: Intel’s quantum-computing work received a technical boost after IonQ demonstrated that a quantum error-correction decoder could run on a standard CPU with minimal overhead. However, the development has no immediate revenue impact. Intel quantum-computing article
• Negative Sentiment: Semiconductor stocks are retreating as bond yields reach multiyear highs, raising the discount rate applied to richly valued AI and technology shares. Intel, Nvidia and AMD are being pressured together in a broad sector move. Semiconductor stocks and bond yields article
• Negative Sentiment: TD Cowen maintained a Hold rating and set a $115 price target, arguing that Intel needs stronger Products revenue growth—not just foundry progress—to justify further upside. The target is below the recent trading level, reinforcing valuation concerns after the stock’s substantial rally. Intel analyst rating article

Intel Company Profile

Intel Corporation NASDAQ: INTC is a global semiconductor company that designs and manufactures computing and communications products. Its portfolio includes Intel Core processors for personal computers, Xeon processors for data centers and enterprise systems, and products for edge computing, networking, and other specialized applications.

Intel also develops graphics processing units under its Intel Arc and Intel Data Center GPU brands, Gaudi artificial intelligence accelerators, Ethernet products, software, and related platform technologies.