Intel Corporation (INTC) Stock Price & How to Invest
Last updated July 2026
Short answer
You can invest in Intel Corporation (INTC) by buying shares or fractional shares at any major US broker, through a semiconductor or broad technology ETF that holds it, or as one holding in a thematic basket. Intel designs and manufactures the x86 CPUs that power most PCs and many data-center servers, and it is also building Intel Foundry, a contract chipmaking business that aims to fabricate silicon for outside customers. The single biggest thing to understand is that INTC is a turnaround story: it is spending heavily to catch up on manufacturing with its 18A process while defending its core CPU franchise, so the thesis rests on whether that costly foundry rebuild pays off rather than on a steady, predictable earnings stream.
INTC stock price
As of 2026-08-18, Intel Corporation (INTC) last closed at $97.16, up 310.7% over the past year. Over the past 52 weeks it has traded between $23.50 and $140.94.
Prices are daily closing prices from Yahoo Finance and may be delayed. For the live quote, check your broker or Intel Corporation's investor relations page. Walnut is informational, not investment advice.
What does Intel Corporation (INTC) do?
Intel Corporation is one of the world's largest semiconductor companies and the leading maker of x86 central processing units (CPUs), the chips that run most personal computers and a large share of data-center servers. It makes money primarily by designing and selling those processors through its client-computing and data-center segments, and it is one of the few chipmakers that both designs and manufactures its own silicon in owned fabrication plants (fabs). In recent years Intel has built that manufacturing arm into Intel Foundry, a contract business that aims to fabricate chips for external customers the way TSMC and Samsung do.
The mid-2026 picture is a turnaround in progress. Q1 2026 revenue was about $13.6 billion, up roughly 7% year over year and ahead of expectations, with the data-center and AI segment up around 22% on strong CPU demand and Intel Foundry revenue near $5.4 billion (though much of that is still Intel making its own chips). The company's leading-edge 18A process is early in its ramp, with the Panther Lake product launch used as proof that the node works, and Intel is courting potential foundry customers including Microsoft, with reported interest from Apple, AMD, Nvidia, Google, and Broadcom. Intel's manufacturing rebuild has drawn unusual outside support, including US CHIPS Act funding, a reported US government equity involvement, and a roughly $5 billion Nvidia stake tied to the foundry effort. The stock trades as a bet on whether that expensive rebuild restores manufacturing competitiveness.
What's driving Intel Corporation (INTC)?
1. Intel 18A and the foundry rebuild
Intel's central thesis is regaining process leadership with its 18A node, which the company positions as competitive with TSMC's next-generation manufacturing. The Panther Lake product launch is used to show 18A works at volume. If Intel can prove yields and win external foundry customers, it could add a large new revenue stream and justify years of heavy capital spending. The node is still early in its ramp, so execution here is the swing factor for the whole story.
2. Data-center and AI CPU demand
Intel's data-center and AI segment grew about 22% year over year in Q1 2026 as demand for server CPUs strengthened, including interest tied to AI infrastructure that still needs general-purpose processors alongside accelerators. Management has framed AI-driven businesses as a majority of revenue. Sustained CPU demand helps fund the foundry build-out, but Intel competes hard here with AMD and with Arm-based server chips.
3. External customers and strategic backing
Winning marquee foundry customers is what would validate Intel as a genuine alternative to TSMC. Reported interest from Apple, AMD, Nvidia, Google, Broadcom, and a signed relationship with Microsoft are watched closely. Unusual outside support, including US CHIPS Act funding, reported US government involvement, and a roughly $5 billion Nvidia stake, signals strategic importance but does not guarantee commercial wins at scale.
4. Cost discipline and margin recovery
Intel has been cutting costs, narrowing its product roadmap, and working to lift gross margins as foundry yields improve. Management guided to gross margins in the high-30s percent range near-term, well below the company's historical levels, reflecting the cost of ramping new processes. Rising input costs, especially memory, are a flagged second-half headwind. How quickly margins recover as 18A scales is a key measure of whether the turnaround is working.
What are the risks to Intel Corporation (INTC)?
The dominant risk is execution: Intel is spending heavily to catch up on manufacturing, and if 18A ramps slowly or yields disappoint, the foundry investment could weigh on earnings for years without delivering the external customers the thesis needs. TSMC has deep, trusted relationships with fabless chip designers and does not compete with them, which makes it hard for Intel to win business from companies it also rivals in design. Competition is intense on all fronts: AMD in CPUs, Nvidia in AI accelerators, Arm-based chips in servers and PCs, and TSMC and Samsung in foundry. Margins are far below historical norms, capital spending is high, and rising memory and input costs are a flagged headwind. Any slip in the 18A ramp, a loss of CPU share, or a downturn in PC and server demand could pressure the stock, and the turnaround remains unproven.
What is the Intel Corporation (INTC) forecast?
41 analysts publish price targets on INTC, averaging $115.27 against a $90.20 price as of August 2026, or +27.8%. The published targets run from $74.00 to $200.00, a wide spread, and the ratings split 14 buy, 31 hold, 3 sell. Over the last six months there have been 9 raises and 2 cuts among the published actions. A price target is what an analyst published on a date, not a prediction, and sell-side ratings skew positive across the whole market.
Read the full INTC forecast and price target for the target table, the recent rating actions by firm, and how the consensus has shifted.
Is INTC a buy or a sell?
We give no verdict on Intel Corporation. Both cases are real, which is why the question is contested at all, so here is the strongest version of each.
The case for buying. Intel 18A and the foundry rebuild. Intel's central thesis is regaining process leadership with its 18A node, which the company positions as competitive with TSMC's next-generation manufacturing. The most optimistic published target, $200.00, assumes this works close to its best case.
The case against. The dominant risk is execution: Intel is spending heavily to catch up on manufacturing, and if 18A ramps slowly or yields disappoint, the foundry investment could weigh on earnings for years without delivering the external customers the thesis needs. The most pessimistic target, $74.00, is roughly what INTC is worth if this bites instead.
Read the full bull and bear case on INTC, including what would have to change to break either one. Walnut is not an investment adviser.
How is Intel Corporation (INTC) valued? (approximate, Jul 2026)
A simple financial snapshot. These are approximations and refresh quarterly; for current figures see Intel Corporation's investor relations page or your broker.
- Q1 2026 revenue: ~$13.6 billion, up ~7% year over year (approximate; verify live)
- Data-center and AI segment: ~$5.1 billion, up ~22% year over year (approximate; verify live)
- Intel Foundry revenue: ~$5.4 billion, though much is still Intel making its own chips (approximate; verify live)
- Gross margin (guided): ~39% non-GAAP near-term, below Intel's historical norms (approximate; verify live)
- Q2 2026 revenue guide: ~$13.8 to $14.8 billion, EPS around $0.20 (approximate; verify live)
- Valuation framing: A turnaround stock priced on foundry potential more than current earnings; verify live multiples
Figures are approximate, tied to the asOf date, and should be verified against live sources before acting. Intel is best understood as a turnaround rather than a steady earnings compounder, so traditional multiples can mislead: near-term margins and profits are depressed by the cost of ramping 18A, and the bull case prices in a foundry recovery that has not yet been proven at scale. The stock tends to react sharply to foundry milestones, customer news, and margin guidance rather than to any single quarter's headline number.
Which ETFs hold Intel Corporation (INTC)?
If you want INTC exposure as part of a larger bundle rather than directly, these ETFs hold it meaningfully. Weights are approximate and refresh quarterly.
| ETF | Name | % in INTC | Expense ratio | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IGM | iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF | 2.9% | 0.39% | |
| MTUM | iShares MSCI USA Momentum Factor ETF | 5.49% | 0.15% | |
| RSP | Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF | 0.45% | 0.20% | |
| FTEC | Fidelity MSCI Information Technology Index ETF | 2.4% | 0.08% | |
| DRIV | Global X Autonomous & Electric Vehicles ETF | ~5.5% | 0.68% | |
| IVE | iShares S&P 500 Value ETF | ~1.8% | 0.18% | |
| IWD | iShares Russell 1000 Value ETF | ~1.6% | 0.18% | |
| QTUM | Defiance Quantum ETF | ~2.6% | 0.40% | |
| SCHV | Schwab U.S. Large-Cap Value ETF | ~1.7% | 0.04% | |
| SPYV | State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 Value ETF | 2.3% | 0.04% | |
| IUSV | iShares Core S&P U.S. Value ETF | 2.1% | 0.04% | |
| FNDX | Schwab Fundamental U.S. Large Company ETF | 2.2% | 0.25% | |
| IYW | iShares U.S. Technology ETF | 3.0% | 0.38% | |
| SPMO | Invesco S&P 500 Momentum ETF | 3.3% | 0.13% | |
| VONV | Vanguard Russell 1000 Value Index Fund ETF Shares | 1.7% | 0.06% | |
| BAI | iShares A.I. Innovation and Tech Active ETF | 3.3% | 0.55% | |
| DFUV | Dimensional US Marketwide Value ETF | 1.8% | 0.21% | |
| PRF | Invesco RAFI US 1000 ETF | 2.8% | 0.34% | |
| BLCR | iShares Large Cap Core Active ETF | 3.5% | 0.36% | |
| RSPT | Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Technology ETF | 1.7% | 0.40% | |
| DSI | iShares ESG MSCI KLD 400 ETF | 1.8% | 0.25% | |
| QTEC | First Trust NASDAQ-100-Technology Sector Index Fund | 2.5% | 0.55% | |
| JTEK | JPMorgan U.S. Tech Leaders ETF | 5.2% | 0.65% |
Who competes with Intel Corporation (INTC)?
CPU and PC and server chip rivals
AMD is Intel's most direct competitor in x86 CPUs for both PCs and data-center servers and has taken meaningful share in recent years. Arm-based designs, including chips from Qualcomm, Apple, and cloud providers building their own server processors, are a growing structural challenge to Intel's general-purpose CPU franchise in both laptops and the data center.
AI accelerator and data-center competitors
Nvidia dominates AI training and inference accelerators (GPUs), the fastest-growing part of data-center spending, where Intel is a small player despite owning a large stake position from Nvidia in the foundry effort. AMD also competes in AI accelerators. This is the area where Intel is weakest relative to the AI infrastructure boom, even as its CPUs remain needed alongside accelerators.
Foundry and contract manufacturing rivals
TSMC is the dominant contract chipmaker and the benchmark Intel Foundry must match on process technology, yields, and customer trust, followed by Samsung Foundry. TSMC's advantage is that it only manufactures and does not compete with its customers in chip design, whereas Intel does, which complicates its pitch to fabless companies like Apple, Nvidia, and AMD.
What stocks are similar to Intel Corporation (INTC)?
Other names that sit close to INTC: same theme, named as a direct competitor, or held beside it in the same funds. Each entry says which. Worth a look if you are thinking about diversification within a thesis rather than concentration on one ticker.
How to invest in Intel Corporation (INTC)
There are three common ways to get INTC exposure. Buy shares (or fractional shares) directly at any major broker. Hold an ETF that includes it (IGM, MTUM, RSP), which spreads the position across many companies. Or build it into a focused thematic portfolio, so INTC sits alongside other stocks that express the same thesis.
Walnut takes the portfolio route. Describe a thesis where INTC fits (for example “AI infrastructure” or “dividend-growth large-caps”) and the AI proposes 5 to 6 constituents with target weights. You review the plan and fund it through your own broker when you're ready.
New to this? Start with how to invest in stocks, see how to analyze a stock with AI, or compare the best AI stock analyzers.
The bottom line on Intel Corporation (INTC)
Intel is a high-stakes turnaround: a still-dominant x86 CPU franchise funding an expensive push into leading-edge foundry manufacturing (18A) with US government and Nvidia backing. It rewards patience if the foundry bet lands and punishes it if 18A ramps slowly, so it suits investors comfortable with execution risk.
More on Intel Corporation (INTC)
Whether INTC is worth buying today depends more on your time horizon and what you already hold than on any single call. We walk through valuation, what would have to go right, and the risks in is INTC a buy or a sell?, and where the stock could go from here in the INTC stock forecast.
For income investors, whether INTC pays a dividend and how the payout looks is covered in does INTC pay a dividend? And to weigh INTC against a peer, read the full side-by-side comparisons: INTC vs AMD and INTC vs AAPL.
Wondering how INTC fits the portfolio you already own? Walnut is an AI investing app that connects your brokerage read-only and answers questions like that about your actual holdings: overlap, concentration, and how each position tracks the S&P 500. Compare the best AI portfolio analyzers or see the best AI investing apps in 2026.
Investing in Intel Corporation with AI
Connect the broker you already use and ask Walnut's AI how INTC fits what you actually hold: whether you own it already through a fund, what it would do to your concentration, and how it has tracked the S&P 500. Read-only by default, and you approve anything before it reaches your broker.
FAQ
Is INTC a good stock to buy right now?
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That depends on your goals, time horizon, and risk tolerance, and this is not investment advice. The bull case is a still-dominant x86 CPU franchise, an improving data-center business, the 18A process ramp, and unusual strategic backing including US government support and a Nvidia stake. The bear case is that Intel is an unproven, capital-heavy turnaround with depressed margins, tough competition from AMD, Nvidia, Arm, and TSMC, and a foundry bet that may take years to pay off. Weigh both against your portfolio.
What does Intel actually do?
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Intel designs and manufactures semiconductors, most famously x86 CPUs that power most PCs and many data-center servers. It sells those processors through its client-computing and data-center segments. It is also one of the few chipmakers that runs its own fabrication plants, and it is building Intel Foundry to manufacture chips for outside customers the way TSMC and Samsung do.
What is Intel 18A and why does it matter?
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18A is Intel's leading-edge manufacturing process, central to its plan to regain semiconductor process leadership. Intel positions it as competitive with rival next-generation nodes and used the Panther Lake product launch to show it works at volume. Whether 18A ramps with strong yields and attracts external foundry customers is the single biggest factor in Intel's turnaround thesis, so investors watch it closely.
Who are Intel's main competitors?
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In CPUs, Intel competes most directly with AMD and increasingly with Arm-based chips from Qualcomm, Apple, and cloud providers. In AI accelerators it trails Nvidia and AMD. In contract manufacturing, Intel Foundry must catch up to TSMC and Samsung Foundry. TSMC is the key benchmark because it leads on process technology and does not compete with its own customers in chip design.
Why does the US government and Nvidia have stakes in Intel?
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Intel's manufacturing rebuild is seen as strategically important for domestic US semiconductor supply, so it has drawn CHIPS Act funding and reported US government equity involvement. Nvidia has a reported roughly $5 billion stake tied to the foundry effort. This outside support signals Intel's importance to the chip supply chain, but backing does not guarantee that Intel wins external foundry customers or restores its margins.
Does Intel pay a dividend?
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Intel historically paid a dividend, but during its turnaround it cut the payout sharply to conserve cash for heavy manufacturing investment. Income has not been the main reason to hold the stock in this phase, since capital is being directed toward the foundry build-out. Always check the latest declared dividend and yield before assuming any payout.
How can I get exposure to Intel through an ETF?
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INTC appears in many semiconductor, broad technology, and large-cap US index ETFs, where it sits among chip and tech names. ETF exposure spreads single-stock risk across many holdings but dilutes how much any Intel move affects you. Always check a fund's holdings and weighting before assuming meaningful exposure to Intel specifically.
What are the main risks of investing in INTC?
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The central risk is execution: if the 18A process ramps slowly or fails to win external customers, the costly foundry investment could weigh on earnings for years. Intel also faces intense competition from AMD in CPUs, Nvidia in AI chips, Arm-based designs, and TSMC and Samsung in foundry. Margins are well below historical levels, capital spending is high, and rising memory and input costs are a flagged headwind. The turnaround remains unproven.
Is Intel a turnaround or a growth stock?
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Intel is best understood as a turnaround. It still has a large, cash-generating CPU business, but its stock story now centers on whether it can restore manufacturing competitiveness with 18A and build a real foundry business. That makes near-term earnings less useful as a guide, since profits are depressed by heavy investment and the thesis depends on a recovery that has not yet been proven at scale.
Guides that feature INTC
INTC is one of the names covered in these guides. Each one puts the stock next to its peers so you can see where it fits rather than judging it alone.
Walnut is informational, not investment advice. Financial figures on this page are approximations; always verify current numbers with Intel Corporation's investor relations page or your broker before making investment decisions.