New York, Jan 20, 2026, 16:46 EST — After-hours
- Intel jumped in late trading after receiving two upgrades from Wall Street.
- Analysts pointed to rising demand for server CPUs, coupled with Intel’s early progress in ramping up its chip production.
- All eyes now shift to Intel’s earnings and outlook set for January 22.
Intel Corp shares jumped about 3.5% in after-hours trading to $48.56, after moving between $45.88 and $50.22 during the day.
The upgrades from HSBC and Seaport Research Partners sparked the move, pointing to increased demand for Intel’s server chips and a steadier outlook for its contract chip manufacturing. Seaport raised its rating to buy with a $65 price target, while HSBC moved to hold and raised its target to $50. 1
Intel’s announcement arrives just two days ahead of its fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 earnings report, due after U.S. markets close Thursday. With the stock’s recent swings, investors are zeroing in on the company’s 2026 guidance rather than its past results. 2
HSBC’s Frank Lee had been cautious, citing “overall uncertainty” around Intel’s foundry execution and unclear growth drivers. Now, he’s upgraded his rating, expecting Intel’s data center business to pick up steam. “We now turn more positive as we expect the traditional servers (DCAI) to get back on a growth trajectory,” Lee said, pointing to Intel’s data center and AI unit. 3
Lee tied this forecast to what he termed “agentic AI,” referring to systems that can plan and execute tasks with little human involvement. He argued this change might drive higher demand for general-purpose server chips. “As AI moves beyond simple assistants to autonomous agents handling planning and execution, the demand for general-purpose compute is accelerating,” he said. 4
Seaport analyst Jay Goldberg bumped Intel to a buy rating, pointing to the upcoming Panther Lake chips built on the 18A process. He believes these could help Intel regain market share and rebuild customer confidence. “18A is highly performant, meaning that Intel is competitive (or at least viable) again in manufacturing,” Goldberg said, though he cautioned the foundry side still has major hurdles to clear. 5
Intel held steady even as the broader market fell. The S&P 500 tracker SPY and Nasdaq 100 tracker QQQ both slipped just over 2% in late trading.
Chip stocks mostly edged down. The VanEck Semiconductor ETF fell about 2.5%, Nvidia plunged more than 4%, and U.S.-listed TSMC slipped over 4%. AMD stayed flat, showing little change.
That said, these upgrades leave the bigger issue untouched: will Intel be able to turn higher demand into steady margins while shrinking losses in its manufacturing arm? Any sign of weaker guidance, product launch delays, or persistent execution hiccups could quickly drag the stock down after its recent rally.
Intel is set to release its earnings report Thursday, followed by a conference call at 2 p.m. PT. Investors will be watching closely for updates on server demand, the Panther Lake rollout, and any concrete progress from Intel Foundry. 6
