- Intel shares last closed down about 1% at $36.90 in the final U.S. session of 2025.
- Nvidia has completed a $5 billion private placement purchase of Intel stock, an SEC filing showed.
- Traders are watching chip-sector sentiment and late-January earnings timing as markets reopen Friday.
Intel Corp (INTC.O) shares closed down about 1% at $36.90 on Wednesday, the final trading session of 2025, with U.S. markets shut on Thursday for New Year’s Day.
The move matters because Intel heads into 2026 after a sharp run-up in 2025, leaving less room for missteps as investors look for proof that funding and partnerships can translate into results.
That scrutiny has sharpened after Nvidia’s $5 billion investment, which adds cash but also increases Intel’s share count — a dilution risk for existing holders if profits don’t rise fast enough.
Intel said in an SEC filing it completed the sale of 214,776,632 shares to Nvidia (NVDA.O) for $5.0 billion in cash, at $23.28 per share. The company said the deal was done as a private placement, meaning the shares were sold outside the public market.
U.S. antitrust agencies cleared Nvidia’s investment in Intel earlier in December, according to a Federal Trade Commission notice cited by Reuters.
Intel’s late-December trading has also tracked a softer tone in equities into year-end. The S&P 500 fell 0.74% and the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.76% in the final session of 2025, Reuters reported. “It’s perfectly fine in any bull market to have moments of cost,” said Giuseppe Sette, co-founder and president of Reflexivity, pointing to profit-taking when liquidity is low. Reuters
Chip stocks broadly weakened alongside the market. The iShares Semiconductor ETF fell 1.2%, while the Nasdaq-100 tracking QQQ slipped 0.8%. Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD.O) each eased about 0.5%, while U.S.-listed shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing rose 1.4%.
Intel traded between $36.82 and $38.01 on Wednesday, according to market data. The stock ended 2025 about 15% below its 52-week high of $44.02 reached on Dec. 3, MarketWatch data showed.
For investors, the next test is whether Intel can show momentum in core PC and data-center chips while advancing its bid to rebuild manufacturing competitiveness — a pressure point as rivals such as AMD and Taiwan’s TSMC set the pace in key markets.
Before the next session, the focus shifts to Friday’s reopening after the holiday closure. Year-start flows often bring sharp moves in large-cap tech and semiconductors, especially after a year-end slide.
Earnings are the next major scheduled catalyst. Yahoo Finance’s earnings calendar lists Intel for Jan. 29 after the close, while Nasdaq’s earnings page also shows Jan. 29 as an estimate based on prior reporting patterns.
From a trading standpoint, Intel’s near-term levels are straightforward: bulls will want to see the shares reclaim the $38 area from Wednesday’s range, while bears will watch whether support around $37 holds as markets resume.
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