New York, January 6, 2026, 17:55 EST — After-hours
Intel (INTC.O) shares rose 1.6% to $40.04 in after-hours trading on Tuesday, after trading between $38.98 and $40.30 during the session. The move followed the chipmaker’s CES product rollout and a fresh “buy” call from Melius Research.
At the CES trade show in Las Vegas, Intel launched its Panther Lake laptop processor line, the first built on 18A — the chipmaking process that defines how densely transistors are printed onto silicon. CEO Lip-Bu Tan said the company hit its pledge to ship first 18A products by the end of 2025, while PC chief Jim Johnson said the design uses a separate graphics chiplet, or small chip stitched into the processor package, and will also underpin a handheld gaming platform this year. Intel has relied on Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co to make much of its Lunar Lake generation and has grappled with Panther Lake yield issues — the number of usable chips per wafer — though executives have said yields are improving monthly as it tries to regain ground from Advanced Micro Devices; Nvidia and AMD also used CES to tout new AI chips. 1
Intel said preorders for the first consumer laptops using its Core Ultra Series 3 processors begin on Jan. 6, with systems available globally from Jan. 27 and additional designs coming through the first half of the year. The company said its top mobile chips pack up to 16 CPU cores and a neural processing unit, or NPU, rated at up to 50 TOPS, a measure of AI compute. Johnson said the PC group is “laser focused on improving power efficiency,” and Intel said the lineup is slated to power more than 200 PC designs. 2
Melius Research analyst Ben Reitzes upgraded Intel to “buy” from “hold” and set a $50 price target, Barron’s reported. Reitzes said the winners in the AI buildout will be those that can “deliver AI productivity and usage soars,” while warning that higher memory costs and data-center delays could temper spending. 3
Tuesday’s move left Intel near its intraday high and kept the spotlight on execution rather than a broad market shift. Investors are looking for early signs that CES interest will translate into orders as PC makers push “AI PC” features into new models.
But the ramp remains the risk. If yields slip or supply tightens, Intel may struggle to turn design wins into volume shipments, leaving it more exposed to pricing pressure from larger rivals.
Traders will watch early preorder momentum in the days ahead and any update on 18A manufacturing progress as CES continues. The next clear checkpoint is Jan. 27, when Intel said the first Core Ultra Series 3 systems are due to reach stores worldwide.
