New York, January 23, 2026, 17:06 EST — After-hours
- Intel fell about 17% to $45.07 in late trading after a downbeat first-quarter outlook
- The company pointed to supply constraints for server chips used in AI data centers
- Investors now look to the Fed on Jan. 28 and next week’s heavy tech earnings slate
Intel (INTC.O) shares sank about 17% to $45.07 in late trading on Friday, as investors bailed out of the chipmaker after it flagged supply constraints and a weaker-than-expected first-quarter outlook. The stock hit an intraday low of $44.45, with nearly 291 million shares changing hands.
The selloff landed at an awkward moment. Investors have treated Intel as a test case for whether an older U.S. semiconductor name can ride the artificial intelligence boom without getting squeezed by manufacturing and supply bottlenecks.
It also weighed on broader sentiment into the weekend. The Dow ended down 0.6% while the S&P 500 finished little changed, and one strategist described the mood as “pretty good,” but with investors braced for more swings. 1
Intel on Thursday reported fourth-quarter revenue of $13.7 billion and adjusted earnings per share of 15 cents; EPS is profit per share, and “adjusted” excludes certain items. It forecast first-quarter revenue of $11.7 billion to $12.7 billion and said it expects adjusted EPS of zero. CFO David Zinsner said, “We expect our available supply to be at its lowest level in Q1 before improving in Q2 and beyond.” 2
Executives said demand for server central processors used in AI data centers has outrun what Intel can ship, even with factories running at capacity. “In the short term, I’m disappointed that we are not able to fully meet the demand in our markets,” CEO Lip-Bu Tan told analysts, and Intel’s forecast came in below Wall Street estimates for revenue and profit. The warning hit a stock that had rallied sharply in recent weeks, as investors bet the turnaround could stick while Intel also faces tougher competition in PCs and data centers. 3
For Intel, the supply issue is a double-edged sword. It can support pricing, but it leaves sales on the table and makes it harder to show margin improvement when demand is there and product is not.
Some of the focus stays on manufacturing execution. Yield — the share of usable chips that come off a silicon wafer — matters because weak yields tend to pressure margins as more output ends up as scrap.
But there are clear risks if the bottlenecks linger. Another miss on supply, or a fresh wobble in data-center spending, could undermine the idea that Intel’s core CPU business benefits cleanly from the AI buildout.
The next major test for markets comes quickly: the Federal Reserve’s Jan. 27-28 meeting, with the rate decision due Jan. 28, and a run of big-tech earnings next week that investors will use to gauge whether AI demand is translating into results. 4
