Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) Shares Gap Down Following Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• Intel shares plunged: The stock opened at $68.36 after closing at $92.07, following Susquehanna’s price-target cut from $105 to $75 and neutral rating.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: Intel has an average “Hold” rating and an average price target of $102.93, with recent upgrades from KGI Securities and Barclays offset by several target reductions.
• Strong quarterly results were overshadowed by weak guidance: Intel reported adjusted EPS of $0.52 and 21% year-over-year revenue growth, but forecast fourth-quarter revenue and EPS below expectations, citing a sharper-than-expected PC slowdown and margin pressure.

Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Friday after Susquehanna lowered their price target on the stock from $105.00 to $75.00. The stock had previously closed at $92.07, but opened at $68.36. Susquehanna currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Intel shares last traded at $65.7780, with a volume of 104,142,609 shares changing hands.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on INTC. Piper Sandler began coverage on Intel in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $110.00 target price for the company. KGI Securities raised Intel from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $95.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday. KeyCorp dropped their price target on shares of Intel from $155.00 to $140.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Barclays raised shares of Intel from a "hold" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 16th. Finally, Northland Securities set a $93.00 target price on Intel in a report on Friday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating, twenty-six have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $102.93.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Lip Bu Tan bought 105,263 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $95.00 per share, with a total value of $9,999,985.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,314,669 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $124,893,555. This represents a 8.70% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.05% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Trending Headlines about Intel

Here are the key news stories impacting Intel this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Intel reported adjusted third-quarter EPS of $0.52, ahead of the approximately $0.40–$0.41 analyst consensus, while revenue increased about 21% year over year to $16.51 billion. Intel third-quarter earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: Data Center and AI revenue surged 78% year over year to $7.3 billion, and Intel Foundry revenue rose 58% to $6.7 billion, supporting the longer-term turnaround narrative. Intel revenue and segment results
• Positive Sentiment: KGI Securities upgraded Intel to “outperform” with a $95 price target, while CEO Lip-Bu Tan said AI agents could eventually expand the server CPU opportunity substantially. KGI Securities Intel rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Intel is facing a reported investor fraud investigation, although the notice does not establish wrongdoing or indicate a formal regulatory finding. Intel fraud investigation notice
• Negative Sentiment: Intel guided for fourth-quarter revenue of $15 billion to $16 billion and adjusted EPS of $0.25, below Wall Street expectations of roughly $17.3 billion in revenue and $0.45 EPS. Management also expects gross margin to fall to about 38%. Intel weak fourth-quarter guidance
• Negative Sentiment: The company said the PC slowdown arrived “sooner and deeper” than expected, with PC chip revenue expected to decline more than 20% sequentially. Rising memory prices, manufacturing bottlenecks and an Israel factory disruption are adding to the pressure. Reuters report on Intel outlook
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts responded with substantial target reductions: Bank of America downgraded Intel to neutral and cut its target to $100, Cantor Fitzgerald lowered its target to $90, and Roth Capital cut its target to $70. Concerns also include the possibility of negative free cash flow in 2027. Analyst reactions to Intel earnings

Institutional Trading of Intel

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Primecap Management Co. CA acquired a new position in Intel in the second quarter worth about $10,507,291,000. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in Intel during the 2nd quarter valued at $4,096,110,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in Intel by 87.1% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 30,214,769 shares of the chip maker's stock valued at $3,632,722,000 after purchasing an additional 14,063,302 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new stake in shares of Intel during the 2nd quarter worth $1,848,438,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in Intel by 35.7% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 31,724,362 shares of the chip maker's stock worth $4,429,673,000 after purchasing an additional 8,342,514 shares in the last quarter. 64.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Intel Stock Down 28.2%

The firm has a market capitalization of $333.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -31.18, a P/E/G ratio of 10.14 and a beta of 2.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $101.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $86.25.

Intel (NASDAQ:INTC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 29th. The chip maker reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.11. Intel had a positive return on equity of 2.62% and a negative net margin of 19.79%. The company had revenue of $16.51 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.56 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.23 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 20.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Intel Corporation will post 1.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Intel Company Profile

Intel Corporation NASDAQ: INTC is a global semiconductor company that designs and manufactures computing and connectivity products. Its portfolio includes Intel Core processors for personal computers, Xeon processors for data centers and enterprise systems, and products for networking, edge computing, graphics, and artificial intelligence workloads.

Through Intel Foundry, the company also provides semiconductor manufacturing and technology-development services for external customers. Intel develops process technologies, advanced packaging, and other manufacturing capabilities intended to support its own products and third-party chip designs.

Founded in 1968 by Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore, Intel helped establish the modern microprocessor industry and has historically supplied processors for PCs, servers, and other computing systems.

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