Intel has accomplished something it hasn’t been able to do since the dot-com era. In other words, it has reached an all-time high.
The company’s stock price soared on April 24, 2026, trading around $82 to $83 after hitting an intraday high of more than $85, according to market data. The move pushed Intel to its previous split-adjusted record and marked a sharp reversal for the company, which has spent much of the past two decades watching rivals like Nvidia and AMD dominate investors’ imaginations.
The increase followed Intel’s first-quarter earnings report, in which sales rose 7% year-over-year to $13.6 billion. The company reported a GAAP loss of $0.73 per share, but adjusted earnings of $0.29 per share were well above expectations. Intel also expects second-quarter revenue to be between $13.8 billion and $14.8 billion, with adjusted EPS of $0.20.
The numbers behind the comeback
Look at where Intel was just a year ago. In April 2025, the stock was hovering around the low $20s, weighed down by years of manufacturing failures, slowing growth, restructuring, and a sense that Intel had missed the first big wave of AI trade.
Since then, the stock has nearly quadrupled in the past 12 months and is on track to more than double in 2026, according to market reports. Intel’s market capitalization is now about $375 billion, a figure that seemed nearly impossible during the company’s 2024 recession.
The catalyst will be the well-known artificial intelligence of 2026. Intel’s data center and AI division posted 22% growth, driven by new demand for Xeon CPUs as AI inference workloads drive the need for general-purpose computing alongside GPUs. Reuters reported that Intel’s supply is tight enough that the company has sold off some of its chips that were previously written off and shelved as demand accelerates.
This is important because Intel’s resurgence is not only being driven by speculative AI labels. This is supported by increased sales, better-than-expected earnings, and a market reassessment of the role that CPUs may continue to play in AI infrastructure.
What’s changed: CPUs, AI demands, and foundry expectations
There are two main chapters in Intel’s turnaround story.
The first is the renewed importance of CPUs in AI infrastructure. Nvidia remains the dominant force in AI accelerators, but AI inference, cloud workloads, and enterprise deployments still require large amounts of CPU. Intel’s latest financial results suggest investors are starting to believe the company can capture some of the demand for the AI boom, rather than remain on the sidelines.
The second chapter is about manufacturing. Intel’s long-term bullishness remains dependent on whether it can restore confidence in its foundry business and advanced process roadmap. The company said Intel Foundry revenue increased from the prior quarter in the first quarter, supported by increased EUV wafer configurations from Intel 3 and growth in 18A activity. However, external foundry revenue for the quarter remained at $174 million, indicating the business is still in the early stages of recovery.
That’s why investors should pay attention to the foundry story. Intel’s manufacturing roadmap is central to the comeback story, but it’s still not the same as a fully established external foundry franchise. While reports have pointed to strategic partnerships and customer interest, the strongest evidence at this point remains Intel’s own advances in process technology, increased foundry revenue, and the market’s willingness to price future execution.
The US government is also weighing in on the story. Barron’s reported that the government’s 9.9% stake in Intel was acquired for $23.47 per share and is now worth much more after the stock price soared. The support strengthens Intel’s position as a strategically important U.S. chipmaker as Washington seeks to reduce its dependence on foreign semiconductor supply chains.
What this means for investors
Before we get too euphoric, some background is needed.
Intel’s turnaround is real, but so are the expectations built into its stock price. The rise from the low $20s to the low $80s in about a year means the market no longer values Intel as a broken legacy chipmaker. We value Intel as a reliable AI and manufacturing recovery story.
This reduces the margin of error. The semiconductor industry is cyclical, and Intel still competes with Nvidia, AMD, Arm, Qualcomm, TSMC, and the growing field of AI chip development. If demand for AI CPUs slows, wins for foundry customers don’t materialize, or manufacturing execution slumps again, the stock could return to profits quickly.
It is also difficult to visualize the evaluation. Traditional earnings multiples are distorted. This is because Intel still posted a GAAP loss in the first quarter. Part of the reason is due to fees and restructuring items. So the investment is not about current profits, but whether Intel can translate revenue growth and demand growth into lasting profit growth.
One metric worth monitoring closely in the coming quarters is the foundry’s customer traction. Intel’s manufacturing business is a long-term theme that separates the company from being just a chip designer. If 18A and future nodes attract major external customers, the bullish trend will increase. If outside foundry revenues remain weak, it will be difficult to justify the stock price at current levels.
Another important metric is profit margin improvement. Beating revenue expectations is important, but Intel needs even stronger profitability to support its nearly $375 billion market cap. As demand improves and manufacturing utilization increases, earnings should also improve. The risk is that investors have already paid for the improvement before it fully shows up in the numbers.
conclusion
Intel’s all-time high on April 24th is a remarkable corporate comeback. The company has transitioned from a market punchline to an AI recovery trade in less than two years, fueled by rising CPU demand, rising revenue, improving foundry momentum, and the strategic importance of US chip policy.
However, the rapid rise in stock prices has also raised the bar. Intel is no longer viewed as a company struggling to rebuild. We’re already being looked at as a company that has solved most of the problems. For investors, the question isn’t whether Intel has changed. It clearly is. The question is whether the roughly $375 billion valuation is already pricing in too much recovery.
