Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) Trading Up 4.4% Following Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Shares of Intel rose about 4.4% after TD Cowen raised its price target from $50 to $60, with the stock trading as high as $65.65 on roughly 110.9 million shares traded.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: several firms have lifted targets (Benchmark to $76), but MarketBeat's consensus remains a 'Reduce' rating with a $48.43 consensus price target.
• Intel beat the quarter on EPS ($0.15 vs. $0.08) and revenue ($13.67B vs. $13.37B), yet guidance and forecasts remain weak—analysts predict about -0.11 EPS for the year, leaving fundamentals uncertain.

Shares of Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC - Get Free Report) were up 4.4% during trading on Monday after TD Cowen raised their price target on the stock from $50.00 to $60.00. TD Cowen currently has a hold rating on the stock. Intel traded as high as $65.65 and last traded at $65.1430. Approximately 110,862,432 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 1% from the average daily volume of 109,479,648 shares. The stock had previously closed at $62.38.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on INTC. Loop Capital raised their price target on shares of Intel from $40.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. HSBC upgraded Intel from a "reduce" rating to a "hold" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $26.00 to $50.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price objective on Intel from $25.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Barclays set a $45.00 price objective on Intel in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, Benchmark lifted their price objective on Intel from $57.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty-six have issued a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $48.43.

Insider Buying and Selling at Intel

In other Intel news, EVP David Zinsner bought 5,882 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 26th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $42.50 per share, for a total transaction of $249,985.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the executive vice president directly owned 247,392 shares in the company, valued at $10,514,160. This trade represents a 2.44% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Boise April Miller sold 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.05, for a total value of $981,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 113,060 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,545,593. The trade was a 15.03% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.05% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Intel

Here are the key news stories impacting Intel this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Expanded Google partnership and high‑profile Terafab/SpaceX collaboration are driving demand expectations for Intel's data‑center and AI silicon, supporting bullish flows into INTC. Intel Climbs 5%: Landmark Google Partnership and Geopolitical Tailwinds Fuel the Rally
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street has been raising targets and upgrading Intel after the deal momentum, which amplifies buyer interest and supports higher valuation expectations. Intel Price Target Raised to $76.00
• Positive Sentiment: Adoption of Intel Xeon 6 in SambaNova's agentic AI systems signals real OEM/customer traction for Intel's latest data‑center CPUs, reinforcing revenue upside if deployments scale. Intel Xeon 6 Becomes Core CPU In SambaNova Agentic AI Push
• Neutral Sentiment: Price momentum and headlines have pushed INTC to multi‑week highs and a long winning streak, which attracts momentum traders but also raises the bar for near‑term performance. Intel's stock is on track for a historic 9-day winning streak, up 56% over that run
• Negative Sentiment: Industry‑wide memory constraints tied to surging AI demand could raise component costs and extend lead times for data‑center builds, a headwind for Intel's customers and for the overall pace of deployments. Industry-Wide Memory Constraints Grow as AI-Driven Supply Shift Reshapes Market
• Negative Sentiment: Some analysts caution the rally may be overextended and see downside risk despite partnership news — that critique could trigger profit‑taking or downgrades if upcoming earnings fail to justify higher expectations. Intel (INTC) Rallies 70% as Google AI Deal Expands, but Analysts Still See Downside

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Intel

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Stance Capital LLC lifted its position in Intel by 118.6% in the fourth quarter. Stance Capital LLC now owns 125,375 shares of the chip maker's stock valued at $4,626,000 after acquiring an additional 68,020 shares during the last quarter. Osbon Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Intel in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. World Investment Advisors lifted its position in Intel by 63.4% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 56,550 shares of the chip maker's stock valued at $2,087,000 after acquiring an additional 21,951 shares during the last quarter. Nalls Sherbakoff Group LLC purchased a new stake in Intel in the fourth quarter valued at $51,000. Finally, PeakShares LLC purchased a new stake in Intel in the fourth quarter valued at $166,000. 64.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Intel Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 2.02 and a quick ratio of 1.65. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $47.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $42.18. The company has a market cap of $325.39 billion, a PE ratio of -814.19, a PEG ratio of 25.89 and a beta of 1.35.

Intel (NASDAQ:INTC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The chip maker reported $0.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.08 by $0.07. Intel had a negative return on equity of 0.44% and a negative net margin of 0.51%.The company had revenue of $13.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.37 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.13 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Intel has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.000-0.000 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Intel Corporation will post -0.11 EPS for the current year.

Intel Company Profile

Intel Corporation, founded in 1968 by Robert Noyce and Gordon E. Moore and headquartered in Santa Clara, California, is a leading global designer and manufacturer of semiconductor products. The company is historically notable for introducing the first commercial microprocessor and for driving the x86 architecture that underpins many personal computers and servers. Intel's core business spans the design, fabrication and marketing of processors, chipsets and related components for a wide range of computing applications.

Intel's product portfolio includes client and mobile processors marketed under brands such as Intel Core and Pentium, as well as high-performance Xeon processors for data centers and cloud infrastructure.

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