By Mackenzie Tatananni
Intel stock has already tripled this year, but one Wall Street firm argues the chip maker is still widely ignored -- and investors are missing out on its true potential.
Shares advanced 5.6% to $113.06 on Thursday after BofA Securities double-upgraded Intel to Buy from Underperform with a $135 price target, up from $96.
Analysts believe Intel could capture a larger share of the burgeoning market for server CPUs, which BofA models at $170 billion by 2030. BofA projects server CPU sales north of $40 billion at that point, or roughly a quarter of the total addressable market.
Crucially, the firm also is bullish on Intel's foundry business, which was seen as a floundering effort as recently as last year. Although it is still unprofitable, the business is steadily gaining traction with customers. The BofA team noted that Intel is negotiating deals with big names including Apple and Elon Musk's Terafab.
In the firm's view, Intel is under-appreciated by Wall Street, a claim that might seem like a stretch for a company worth $538 billion. Yet despite being one of the largest companies in its peer group, Intel is the second least-owned semiconductor stock in the S&P 500, trailing only Sandisk.
Only 16% of major funds hold Intel in their portfolios, BofA noted. That number crept up slightly -- by 3% -- from last month.
Given that ownership remains relatively low, "we flag potential for ownership broadening to lead to stock gains," analysts wrote. As they see it, there's room for more funds to start buying in, which could create massive upward pressure on the price.
The bullish thesis comes with risks, namely fiercer competition from rivals like Arm Holdings and a slowdown in AI spending, which would hurt CPU sales. Still, a rare double-upgrade shows undeniable confidence in Intel's comeback, signaling that the stock has even more room to run.
Write to Mackenzie Tatananni at mackenzie.tatananni@barrons.com
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 11, 2026 11:23 ET (15:23 GMT)
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