Intel’s Stock Plunges Amid Concerns About Chipmaker’s Outlook, Tough Competition

Intel (INTC) shares tumbled Friday as analysts at Goldman Sachs and Bank of America lowered their price targets for the chipmaker, a day after the company’s weak guidance overshadowed better-than-expected first-quarter revenue and profit.

The stock was down was down 8.6% at $32.08 at around noon ET, after falling as low as $30.64 earlier in the trading session, its lowest level since last June.

Tough Time Competing With Nvidia

Goldman Sachs analysts their price target for the stock to $34 from $39 and reduced their adjusted earnings per share estimates for the 2024-2026 period by 18% on average. They also reiterated their “sell” rating for the stock that has been in place since July 2020.

“We worry that the company will continue to cede wallet share within the overall Data Center Compute market to the likes of Nvidia (NVDA) and Arm (ARM),” Goldman analysts led by Toshiya Hari said in a note Friday.

Bank of America lowered its price objective to $40 from $44 citing “higher costs, lower growth,” and “tough competition.”

Limited AI Exposure a Concern

The BofA analysts said that while first-quarter sales were in line with expectations, the weak second-quarter guidance showcase that “topline growth remains lukewarm on limited AI exposure, while underutilized manufacturing and elevated costs.”

Bank of America added that Intel’s “enterprise incumbency, US-based manufacturing assets and weak investor sentiment provide turnaround potential.”

The chipmaker has been working to keep up with Nvidia, Arm and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) as the artificial intelligence (AI) boom has increased the demand for advanced computing chips capable of running AI workloads.

Intel shares have lost about 35% since the start of the year, while Nvidia is up about 75%, Arm has risen 34% and AMD has gained 7%