Stock Traders Purchase High Volume of Intel Call Options (NASDAQ:INTC)

Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock investors acquired 792,840 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 32% compared to the average volume of 602,188 call options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Intel

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of INTC. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Intel by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 390,829,684 shares of the chip maker’s stock worth $13,112,336,000 after purchasing an additional 4,925,949 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Intel by 1.6% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 203,617,629 shares of the chip maker’s stock valued at $4,561,035,000 after buying an additional 3,168,824 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Intel by 1.8% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 97,563,079 shares of the chip maker’s stock worth $2,174,854,000 after buying an additional 1,760,773 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its position in shares of Intel by 32.5% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 86,503,121 shares of the chip maker’s stock worth $2,902,180,000 after buying an additional 21,230,715 shares during the period. Finally, Primecap Management Co. CA increased its stake in shares of Intel by 4.3% in the 2nd quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 80,298,180 shares of the chip maker’s stock valued at $1,798,679,000 after acquiring an additional 3,313,890 shares during the last quarter. 64.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Intel

Here are the key news stories impacting Intel this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Intel debuted its Panther Lake/Core Ultra Series 3 processors — the first built on its 18A process — at CES, with strong performance and gaming demos that support Intel’s manufacturing comeback narrative. Stock Market Today, Jan. 7: Intel Surges After Panther Lake AI PC Chips Spark Investor Optimism
• Positive Sentiment: NVIDIA completed a multi-billion-dollar share purchase of Intel last month; markets view that stake as a vote of confidence and a strategic alignment for AI-related product cycles. Nvidia’s (NVDA) Investment in Intel Supports Its 2026 Bull Thesis
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts have been upgrading coverage after the CES reveals (example: Melius Research / others raising ratings and price targets), adding momentum to the rally. Melius Upgrades Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) to “Buy”
• Positive Sentiment: Unusually large call option activity (roughly 792,840 calls traded) signals speculative/institutional bullish positioning ahead of follow-on catalysts. (Market options flow entry)
• Neutral Sentiment: Intel confirmed a scheduled release of Q4 and full-year 2025 results — an upcoming earnings date that could reinforce or reverse the current optimism. Intel to Report Fourth-Quarter and Full-Year 2025 Financial Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage pieces and explainers are evaluating whether Intel’s turnaround is truly sustainable — these narratives can amplify moves but leave clarity pending on margin and foundry growth details. Intel Stock Is Soaring. Is the Turnaround Gamble Finally Paying Off?
• Negative Sentiment: Execution risk remains: delivering volume, sustained 18A yields, and competitive pressure from AMD/NVIDIA in PC and AI markets are real downsides if Intel stumbles on ramp or pricing. Intel Enters Handheld Gaming Wars With Dedicated New Processor

Intel Trading Up 6.5%

Shares of INTC opened at $42.63 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $37.93 and its 200-day simple moving average is $30.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $203.64 billion, a PE ratio of 4,267.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 25.48 and a beta of 1.35. Intel has a 12-month low of $17.67 and a 12-month high of $44.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The chip maker reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter. Intel had a negative return on equity of 0.75% and a net margin of 0.37%.The firm had revenue of $13.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($0.46) EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Intel has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 0.080-0.080 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Intel will post -0.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

INTC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Intel in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on Intel from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Benchmark boosted their price objective on Intel from $43.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Bank of America restated an “underperform” rating and set a $34.00 target price on shares of Intel in a report on Monday, October 13th. Finally, Northland Securities raised their target price on Intel from $28.00 to $42.00 in a research note on Friday, September 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty-four have assigned a Hold rating and eight have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $35.88.

Intel Company Profile

Intel Corporation, founded in 1968 by Robert Noyce and Gordon E. Moore and headquartered in Santa Clara, California, is a leading global designer and manufacturer of semiconductor products. The company is historically notable for introducing the first commercial microprocessor and for driving the x86 architecture that underpins many personal computers and servers. Intel’s core business spans the design, fabrication and marketing of processors, chipsets and related components for a wide range of computing applications.

Intel’s product portfolio includes client and mobile processors marketed under brands such as Intel Core and Pentium, as well as high-performance Xeon processors for data centers and cloud infrastructure.