New York, January 8, 2026, 10:05 AM ET — Regular session
Intel (INTC.O) shares fell 1.6% to $41.95 in morning trade on Thursday. The stock has ranged between $41.87 and $43.31 so far.
The pullback comes a day after Intel’s shares jumped when the company said it has begun shipping its first products made on 18A, its newest chipmaking process. The initial shipments involve the Panther Lake family, branded as Core Ultra Series 3, and Melius Research upgraded the stock to “buy” with a $50 price target. 1
Investors have latched onto 18A because it sits at the center of Intel’s foundry push — making chips for other firms — and the company has spent years trying to prove it can run advanced manufacturing at scale. “As we go throughout 2026, we’ll hear more good news about their future foundry prospects,” Melius’s Ben Reitzes told CNBC. 2
Intel has pitched the Core Ultra Series 3 rollout as a broad AI PC platform and said it expects the chips to power more than 200 partner designs. “We are laser focused on improving power efficiency … more AI compute and app compatibility you can count on with x86,” client-computing chief Jim Johnson said. 3
Intel said late on Wednesday it will report fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 results on Jan. 22 after the market close and will host an earnings call at 2 p.m. PT. Investors will look for guidance on PC demand and the cost of expanding Intel’s manufacturing business. 4
The broader market tone was cautious after data showed U.S. weekly jobless claims rose to 208,000, even as layoffs remained low by historical standards. Traders have been using each labor print to reset rate expectations into Friday’s payrolls report. 5
But shipping a first batch is not the same as a smooth ramp. Intel has struggled with yield — the share of good chips per wafer — and it still has to claw back share from AMD while keeping costs under control. 6
Next up, the U.S. Employment Situation report for December 2025 is due at 8:30 a.m. ET on Friday, followed by the December CPI report on Jan. 13, ahead of the Fed’s Jan. 27-28 meeting. For Intel investors, the next hard catalyst is the Jan. 22 earnings conference call. 7
