Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) Shares Gap Up on Insider Buying Activity

Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC)’s share price gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday after an insider bought additional shares in the company. The stock had previously closed at $43.93, but opened at $46.60. Intel shares last traded at $48.3590, with a volume of 81,539,619 shares traded.

Specifically, EVP David Zinsner purchased 5,882 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 26th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $42.50 per share, with a total value of $249,985.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president directly owned 247,392 shares in the company, valued at $10,514,160. The trade was a 2.44% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Analyst Ratings Changes

INTC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Melius Research upgraded Intel from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Intel in a report on Wednesday. Tigress Financial reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Intel in a report on Wednesday. HSBC raised shares of Intel from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their target price for the company from $26.00 to $50.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Roth Mkm boosted their price target on shares of Intel from $40.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty-six have assigned a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $45.20.

Key Intel News

Here are the key news stories impacting Intel this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Senior insider buying: EVP David Zinsner purchased ~5,882 shares at about $42.50, a visible management vote of confidence that often attracts value buyers. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support/upgrades: New Street raised its price target to $50 and Citic Securities upgraded to Buy (higher targets cited), giving tactical cover for buyers after the post‑earnings pullback. Read More. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: NVIDIA foundry rumor: reports that NVIDIA may use Intel foundries for some 2028 GPU work have lifted sentiment about Intel’s future foundry opportunity and revenue optionality. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts and deep‑dive pieces argue the recent sell‑off overreacted to temporary supply issues—pointing to a Q4 beat, large cash balance and long‑term AI demand as support for a rebound. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Company/HR news: Intel will match a $1,000 government child contribution for eligible U.S. employees—positive PR but limited impact on near‑term revenue. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector tailwinds: the broader chip rally after solid industry earnings (Texas Instruments, ASML, etc.) provides momentum that can lift Intel alongside peers. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Guidance and supply constraints remain the principal negative catalyst—management warned of depleted buffer inventory and constrained manufacturing yields, producing weak Q1 guidance that triggered the prior large sell‑off. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst skepticism & other risks: lingering sell ratings, questions over foundry execution and flagged auditor/accounting concerns keep downside risk elevated until yields and capacity visibly improve. Read More.

Intel Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company has a market capitalization of $244.24 billion, a PE ratio of -611.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.83 and a beta of 1.35. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $40.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $33.36.

Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The chip maker reported $0.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by $0.07. Intel had a negative return on equity of 0.44% and a negative net margin of 0.51%.The firm had revenue of $13.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.13 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Intel has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.000-0.000 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Intel Corporation will post -0.11 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Intel

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Focus Financial Network Inc. increased its stake in shares of Intel by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 10,788 shares of the chip maker’s stock worth $398,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. Successful Portfolios LLC lifted its stake in Intel by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Successful Portfolios LLC now owns 8,715 shares of the chip maker’s stock valued at $322,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. Orca Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Intel by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Orca Investment Management LLC now owns 50,697 shares of the chip maker’s stock valued at $1,871,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares during the period. Jeppson Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Intel by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Jeppson Wealth Management LLC now owns 21,236 shares of the chip maker’s stock worth $784,000 after buying an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantum Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Intel by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Quantum Financial Advisors LLC now owns 6,235 shares of the chip maker’s stock valued at $230,000 after buying an additional 230 shares during the period. 64.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Intel

Intel Corporation, founded in 1968 by Robert Noyce and Gordon E. Moore and headquartered in Santa Clara, California, is a leading global designer and manufacturer of semiconductor products. The company is historically notable for introducing the first commercial microprocessor and for driving the x86 architecture that underpins many personal computers and servers. Intel’s core business spans the design, fabrication and marketing of processors, chipsets and related components for a wide range of computing applications.

Intel’s product portfolio includes client and mobile processors marketed under brands such as Intel Core and Pentium, as well as high-performance Xeon processors for data centers and cloud infrastructure.