'PC Shipments are Forecast To Rise…,' Intel Stock (NASDAQ:INTC) Slips

Business Insider

5 days ago

Chip stock Intel (INTC) recently put up its earnings report, and one key point emerged that proved oddly welcome. As it turns out, Intel's work to help augment the artificial intelligence (AI) PC market has done Intel quite a bit of good. This serves as a bright spot for Intel, which is in desperate need of those as so much of the market seems to be turning on it. But shareholders were still clearly skeptical, and shares slipped modestly in Tuesday afternoon's trading.
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One of the biggest surprises to emerge from Intel's recent earnings report was the revelation that Intel is a major part of the AI PC market. In fact, three key PC makers—HP (HPQ), Lenovo (LNVGY), and Dell (DELL) —all turned to Intel for its line of Core Ultra processors that can handle AI operations. Given that those three firms represent around 66% of the global PC market, Intel may have landed a serious win.
There was further help from Gartner Research Principal Rishi Padhi, who noted that PC shipments '…are forecast to rise 2.4% in 2025, propelled by a tariff-driven front-loaded inventory surge in the first half of 2025 in the U.S., and ongoing Windows 11 replacement cycles.' That is also good news for Intel. With foundry shipments up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis, there are some signs of a comeback in the making for Intel, though perhaps a slow one, and one not quite as pronounced as some might like.
A Surprising Blow to Costa Rica
Intel has been closing down operations worldwide, and one more such operation emerged recently. Intel announced plans to shut down chip assembly and test plant operations in Costa Rica, a move which will, somehow, '…drive greater efficiency and utilization within our global manufacturing network.'
However, that is not the end of Intel in Costa Rica. Its engineering and corporate service positions will remain untouched, at least for now, reports note. Intel plans to absorb the losses by consolidating Assembly and Test Manufacturing (ATM) operations in Vietnam and Malaysia instead. Interestingly, some elements in Costa Rica moved quickly following the announcement. The Association of Free Zone Companies of Costa Rica (AZOFRAS) called on Costa Rican leaders to '…take swift action to safeguard national competitiveness,' one report noted.
Is Intel a Buy, Hold or Sell?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Hold consensus rating on INTC stock based on one Buy, 25 Holds and three Sells assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 31.36% loss in its share price over the past year, the average INTC price target of $22.25 per share implies 8.75% upside potential.