On Wednesday, Intel shares rose more than 10%, climbing to $48.58 after a recent sell-off tied to its Q1 outlook. The rally followed weeks of volatility that started when investors grew concerned about the chipmaker’s near-term guidance.
Year-to-date, Intel is up roughly 31%, outpacing AMD and Nvidia. The stock fell over 10% after hours on Thursday and slid about 17% during Friday trading.
On Thursday, Intel reported better-than-expected Q4 2025 earnings but issued cautious Q1 guidance. The company set first-quarter revenue at a $12.2 billion midpoint, below the $12.6 billion Bloomberg-tracked consensus, and guided EPS of $0 versus an $0.08 estimate.
A midweek lift came from Texas Instruments, which forecast first-quarter EPS of $1.22 to $1.48 and revenue of $4.3 billion to $4.7 billion. Its midpoint EPS of about $1.35 and revenue near $4.5 billion topped analysts’ forecasts and helped revive chip stocks.
ASML also boosted sentiment with bookings that came in nearly double expectations. (Ed. note: These results suggested AI demand remains strong.)
The shares remain down about 10% over the past five trading days despite the rebound. The move indicates short-term selling pressure may be easing.
Analysts remain cautious with mixed ratings from Sell to Hold and conservative targets. Rosenblatt and Loop Capital each set a $25 target, while Truist Securities put a $39 target on the stock.
