Intel Corporation (INTC.US) suffered its worst sell-off in nearly half a century after earnings! Major banks cut their target prices, while technical analysts say it's a buying opportunity.

Intel Corporation (INTC.US) shares fell more than 28% on Friday after the company reported disappointing third-quarter 2026 results. The earnings report showed that Intel Corporation's Q3 revenue rose 21% year-over-year to $16.5 billion, and adjusted earnings per share were 52 cents, both above market expectations. Performance across business segments diverged sharply. The Data Center and AI (DCAI) segment became the core growth engine, with Q3 revenue of $7.318 billion, surging 78% year-over-year, and operating income of $3.039 billion, for a margin of 41.5%. The Client Computing and Physical AI (CCPG) segment related to personal computers (PC) was weak, with revenue of $8.097 billion, down 5% year-over-year, and operating income contracting in tandem. Intel Corporation management said demand for server CPUs is high, but supply has become the biggest constraint, and the company is easing tight supply of Xeon processors by increasing factory capacity and optimizing yields. The company also said it expects the PC market slowdown to last at least through the first half of 2027. On guidance, Intel Corporation expects fourth-quarter revenue of $15 billion to $16 billion and adjusted earnings per share of 25 cents, both well below expectations. The pressure on results was partly due to an explosion at its Israel plant, which is expected to reduce Q4 revenue by about $300 million and lower gross margin by about 200 basis points. The company also raised its 2026 capital expenditure forecast from $18 billion to $20 billion and expects a further increase in 2027. After Intel Corporation announced third-quarter results, Wall Street major banks JPMorgan and BofA Securities both cut their target prices for the stock. JPMorgan maintained its "Neutral" rating on Intel Corporation but lowered its target price from $85 to $80; BofA Securities downgraded Intel Corporation directly from "Buy" to "Neutral" and cut its target price from $145 to $100. However, on the Seeking Alpha platform, several analysts still raised their ratings on Intel Corporation. Analyst Mike Zaccardi, based on technical analysis, believes the sell-off is Intel Corporation's worst since the 1970s but also constitutes a key buying opportunity. Mike Zaccardi wrote: "Intel Corporation's share price gain so far in 2026 is still as high as 87%, and in my view, the current plunge appears to constitute a key technical buying opportunity." He upgraded Intel Corporation from "Sell" to "Buy." Analyst Bohdan Kucheriavyi also upgraded Intel Corporation. He noted that considering the company's revenue grew about 21% year-over-year and adjusted earnings per share beat expectations by $0.12, its earnings report "performed quite well." However, the analyst also wrote: "The problem is that fourth-quarter performance is expected to be significantly weaker than the third quarter." He therefore upgraded the stock from "Sell" to "Hold." Analyst Kenio Fontes upgraded Intel Corporation on the basis that the margin of safety improved after the stock plunge. Kenio ">The Asian Investor also published a similar upgrade report, arguing that after Intel Corporation's stock plunge, its valuation "has returned to normal," with the current share price 50% below its level a year ago. The analyst wrote: "Intel Corporation's stock is down about 50% from its high of about $142 over the past year, and its valuation has returned to a level closer to the chipmaker's historical average." However, Quad 7 Capital, head of the Seeking Alpha investment research team, downgraded Intel Corporation from "Hold" to "Sell." The institution pointed out that Intel Corporation's stock price remains at a level that "has fully priced in perfect expectations," but the company's future performance has begun to show that its elevated market expectations have not been met. Quad 7 Capital believes: "With full-year capital expenditure (CapEx) still at a high level and fourth-quarter profitability weakening rapidly, the stock's currently elevated valuation premium is becoming increasingly difficult to sustain."