Intel Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:INTC)

Intel Co. (NASDAQ:INTC) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock investors acquired 471,563 put options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 81% compared to the average daily volume of 260,841 put options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Truist Financial cut their price target on Intel from $45.00 to $33.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Intel from $37.00 to $35.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 26th. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Intel from $40.00 to $36.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 26th. HSBC reduced their price objective on Intel from $44.00 to $37.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, Roth Mkm reduced their target price on Intel from $45.00 to $35.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-one have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $39.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Intel news, CEO Patrick P. Gelsinger purchased 4,100 shares of Intel stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $30.29 per share, with a total value of $124,189.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,375 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,192,668.75. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Intel news, CEO Patrick P. Gelsinger acquired 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 29th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $31.42 per share, with a total value of $125,680.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,275 shares in the company, valued at $1,108,340.50. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Patrick P. Gelsinger bought 4,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $30.29 per share, for a total transaction of $124,189.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,375 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,192,668.75. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.04% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Intel

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Intel in the fourth quarter worth $2,424,202,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Intel by 543.5% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 37,384,507 shares of the chip maker’s stock worth $1,878,572,000 after buying an additional 31,575,084 shares in the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System grew its holdings in Intel by 102.6% during the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 16,074,760 shares of the chip maker’s stock worth $807,757,000 after acquiring an additional 8,140,835 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in Intel by 44.8% in the 1st quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 21,556,234 shares of the chip maker’s stock valued at $952,139,000 after acquiring an additional 6,673,086 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Intel by 17.8% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 34,564,037 shares of the chip maker’s stock worth $1,228,752,000 after acquiring an additional 5,217,549 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.53% of the company’s stock.

Intel Price Performance

Shares of Intel stock traded down $0.68 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $30.00. 61,225,458 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 48,332,656. The company has a market cap of $127.71 billion, a PE ratio of 31.15, a PEG ratio of 10.05 and a beta of 1.09. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $39.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $42.05. Intel has a twelve month low of $26.85 and a twelve month high of $51.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.14.

Intel Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 7th will be paid a $0.125 dividend. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.67%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 6th. Intel’s dividend payout ratio is 52.08%.

About Intel

Intel Corporation designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and sells computing and related products and services worldwide. It operates through Client Computing Group, Data Center and AI, Network and Edge, Mobileye, and Intel Foundry Services segments. The company's products portfolio comprises central processing units and chipsets, system-on-chips (SoCs), and multichip packages; mobile and desktop processors; hardware products comprising graphics processing units (GPUs), domain-specific accelerators, and field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs); and memory and storage, connectivity and networking, and other semiconductor products.