Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) Shares Down 1% – Here’s Why

Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC)’s share price fell 1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $119.44 and last traded at $122.60. 84,401,963 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 28% from the average session volume of 117,854,898 shares. The stock had previously closed at $123.86.

Key Intel News

Here are the key news stories impacting Intel this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan said the company can fulfill only about half of current customer CPU demand, suggesting strong orders for processors used in AI inference and persistent-agent workloads. The supply constraint could support pricing and future revenue if Intel expands production. Intel can fill only half of CPU orders
• Positive Sentiment: Management continues to position quantum processors as complementary to CPUs and GPUs rather than replacements, potentially giving Intel a role in future hybrid-computing systems. However, this remains a long-term opportunity rather than a near-term earnings driver. Intel CEO discusses quantum computing
• Positive Sentiment: Intel is expanding its Core Ultra Series 3 processors into additional Googlebook laptops, supporting its PC recovery and AI-PC strategy. Separately, potential interest in Intel’s Ohio site from SK Hynix and an upcoming Altera IPO could highlight value in Intel’s assets and foundry operations. Intel Core Ultra Googlebook expansion
• Neutral Sentiment: The stock had risen roughly 30% over the past month and moved above average analyst price targets, increasing the likelihood of consolidation and profit-taking even as bullish analysts cite foundry and CPU upside. Intel rally and analyst targets
• Negative Sentiment: Reports about Meta’s Muse AI agents revived the CPU-demand thesis, but Meta has not disclosed Intel hardware use or a purchase commitment. That weakens the immediate fundamental case behind the recent AI-driven rally. Intel and Meta Muse CPU thesis
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned that Taiwan Semiconductor’s dominant foundry market share and Intel’s still-unproven 18A/14A comeback make the valuation vulnerable if the turnaround takes longer than expected. Intel versus TSMC foundry competition
• Negative Sentiment: Semiconductor stocks broadly retreated as investors locked in gains after a multi-session technology rally, while higher yields and oil prices reduced appetite for high-growth stocks.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America decreased their price target on Intel from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Intel in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Intel from $109.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 4th. Daiwa Securities Group downgraded Intel from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Seaport Research Partners reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $125.00 price target on shares of Intel in a research note on Friday, July 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating, twenty-six have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $108.49.

Intel Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $618.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -58.10, a PEG ratio of 13.00 and a beta of 2.22. The company has a 50 day moving average of $97.51 and a 200 day moving average of $93.31. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The chip maker reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.21. Intel had a positive return on equity of 2.62% and a negative net margin of 19.79%.The firm had revenue of $16.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.43 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.10) earnings per share. Intel’s revenue was up 25.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Intel has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.380-0.380 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Intel Corporation will post 1.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Lip Bu Tan acquired 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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,314,669 shares in the company, valued at approximately $124,893,555. The trade was a 8.70% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.05% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Intel

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp increased its stake in Intel by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 216,849,675 shares of the chip maker’s stock worth $30,278,720,000 after acquiring an additional 2,528,657 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its stake in Intel by 20.3% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 104,060,268 shares of the chip maker’s stock worth $3,839,833,000 after acquiring an additional 17,557,147 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Intel by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 101,931,512 shares of the chip maker’s stock valued at $3,744,406,000 after buying an additional 3,124,798 shares in the last quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA bought a new position in shares of Intel during the second quarter valued at approximately $10,507,291,000. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in Intel during the 4th quarter worth about $2,233,159,000. Institutional investors own 64.53% of the company’s stock.

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.