Options trader Oliver Rennick delivered a warning while discussing Cisco's earnings setup: “Implied volatility in Cisco is the highest in more than a year.
More than 25 years after the dot-com crash wiped out trillions of dollars in market value, some of the same companies that once symbolised the excesses of the internet boom are once again at the centre of Wall Street's hottest rally. Cisco Systems, Intel and Corning — three companies whose meteoric rise and collapse came to define the technology bubble of 2000 — are now staging dramatic comebacks powered by investor enthusiasm around artificial intelligence.
Shares of Intel (INTC) and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) are bleeding red this morning amidst a broader macro-driven sell-off across the US semiconductor names. Investors seem to be taking profit following parabolic multi-week rallies that have seen valuations soar to historic extremes.
Shares of Intel (NASDAQ:INTC | INTC Price Prediction) are trading at $115 in midday action Thursday, down 4% on the session.
Intel and Qualcomm shares fell sharply on Thursday as investors pulled back from two of the biggest beneficiaries of the artificial intelligence-driven semiconductor rally, while analysts warned that competitive pressures remain intense despite surging enthusiasm around AI infrastructure spending. Intel shares (INTC) declined nearly 3%, marking a third consecutive day of losses after a rally that has seen the stock more than triple so far this year.
INTC surged after reports of a preliminary Apple chip deal, adding to gains fueled by AI growth and strong foundry demand.
Intel (INTC) has seen its foundry segment finally gain momentum after enduring years of challenges. The company's 18A process node, which is its most sophisticated to date, is now in commercial production.
On March 21, 2026, at the Seaholm Power Plant in Austin, Elon Musk unveiled “the most epic chip-building exercise in history”: Terafab, a joint venture between Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA | TSLA Price Prediction), SpaceX, and xAI, with Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) as foundational manufacturing partner.
Intel shares have surged by +200% since late March on investor excitement about the CPU Renaissance and potential customers for its foundry business. The rally, which has pushed Intel past its dot-com era highs, prices in an unconfirmed preliminary Apple foundry agreement reported by the WSJ last week. Intel is becoming increasingly risky from a fundamental perspective as the stock and valuation have now baked in all potential positives, leaving no room for bad news.
Intel (NASDAQ:INTC | INTC Price Prediction) shares have gone vertical.
MPWR edges INTC in this AI chip showdown, despite pricier valuation, on a stronger growth outlook and power solutions demand.
The semiconductor sector has entered territory the Wall Street Journal is now calling “the great chip stock melt-up of 2026.