NEW YORK, Jan 21, 2026, 09:05 ET — Premarket
- Before the market opened, Intel shares climbed on the back of new upgrades from Wall Street analysts.
- The chipmaker is set to release its results Thursday after the market closes, and options are pricing in a big move.
- Attention centers on data-center demand and updates regarding Intel’s new 18A manufacturing process.
Intel (INTC.O) shares climbed $1.63, roughly 3.5%, to $48.56 in premarket trading on Wednesday, buoyed by a series of upbeat analyst reports that extended the rally ahead of earnings.
The announcement arrives just a day ahead of Intel’s fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 earnings report, set to drop after the market closes, with a conference call slated for 2 p.m. PT. (Intel)
Traders are preparing for a wild ride. Options pricing suggests Intel could swing roughly 8% up or down by week’s end, Investopedia reports. The same source expects revenue near $13.4 billion and adjusted earnings of 8 cents per share. Wedbush, quoted in the Investopedia piece, flagged that recent Intel headlines have caused “seemingly disproportionate impacts on the stock.” (Investopedia)
Upgrades helped drive the momentum. Seaport bumped Intel to Buy, setting a $65 price target. HSBC also raised its rating to Hold and upped its target to $50, pointing to stronger demand for server CPUs linked to “agentic AI” — autonomous software agents that push up general-purpose computing power. (Investing)
A Reuters earnings preview highlighted growing investor confidence in CEO Lip-Bu Tan’s turnaround efforts. Data-center revenue is projected to surge over 30% to $4.43 billion, while the PC segment is forecast to inch up to $8.21 billion, based on LSEG estimates cited by Reuters. Ryuta Makino of Gabelli Funds described sentiment as “the most optimistic” in years and anticipates “at least a double-digit” increase in server CPU prices in 2026. (Reuters)
Intel is also working to revamp its manufacturing narrative. It recently began shipping “Panther Lake” PC chips made on its 18A process node, moving beyond its past dependence on Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing for earlier PC chips. Investors are closely watching for early signals that Intel’s foundry ambitions might attract external clients.
That’s still the tough challenge. Reuters reported that Nvidia and Broadcom have conducted manufacturing tests alongside Intel. The key question for markets: will yields—the percentage of usable chips per silicon wafer—ramp up quickly enough to sustain margins and drive meaningful external volume?
Intel continues to struggle in the PC market, losing ground to competitors like AMD and Arm-based chips. On top of that, rising memory costs—caused by constrained supply—could force laptop prices higher, potentially dampening demand just as Intel aims to roll out new models.
But with the stock already priced for strong earnings, there’s little slack for any missteps. If Intel’s guidance falls short or management sounds wary about the 18A ramp or foundry customer schedules, the downside is clear: investors could pull back, trimming some of the recent rally in the shares.
The checklist remains clear for now. Investors will dig into the data-center segment to gauge unit demand and pricing, look for any solid updates on external foundry customers, and track gross margin — a crucial profitability metric post-production costs — to see if yield improvements are reflected in the figures.
Thursday’s after-hours report and the subsequent conference call will be the next big catalyst. Investors will be watching closely for Intel’s guidance and any updates on Panther Lake and 18A progress, which could shape the stock’s direction heading into next week.
