Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) stock remains one of the emerging winners on Wall Street, though analysts are projecting a more cautious outlook for the semiconductor giant over the next 12 months.
Applied Materials, Inc. is a top "picks and shovels" play in the semiconductor equipment space, benefiting from broad chip demand and recent U.S. production catalysts. AMAT stands out for its financial prudence, distributing 90% of excess free cash flow to shareholders and maintaining a robust balance sheet. With a forward P/E near 40x versus a 3-year average of 22x, AMAT stock's valuation is elevated, making pre-earnings entry risky despite strong secular tailwinds.
Apple and Intel have reportedly reached a preliminary agreement that would see Intel make some chips for Apple devices. If completed, the deal would be the most notable vote of confidence yet for Intel's once-struggling chip foundry business.
Demand for CPUs is skyrocketing as the AI race moves from chatbots to agents. While Nvidia dominated the early years of the AI infrastructure boom, the wealth is now being spread to Intel and AMD as well as memory makers like Micron.
Intel is in the midst of transforming its business, with shares up 17% on Friday following a fresh sign of a future Apple manufacturing partnership.
Intel is closing the week on a rocket ride.
Shares of Intel surged sharply on Friday after a report said the company had reached a preliminary agreement with Apple to manufacture some of the chips used in the iPhone maker's devices. According to a Wall Street Journal report citing people familiar with the matter, Apple and Intel had been engaged in intensive talks for more than a year and finalised a formal agreement in recent months.
Shares of Intel (INTC) surged around 8% in on Friday, hitting a fresh all-time high of $118.75. Investors continued to pile into the semiconductor giant amid growing optimism around its turnaround strategy and artificial intelligence positioning.
While the benchmark S&P 500 index is overall almost 8% in the green in 2026 and close to its all-time highs (ATH), there has been significant divergence between the performance of the various stocks contained within.
INTC jumps after reports Apple is exploring U.S. chip production talks with Intel, boosting confidence in its growing foundry business.
Following the stock's record 174% rise, which surpasses dot-com bubble records, some are questioning whether Intel is flying too close to the sun.
Chart 1 CoWoS remains the dominant solution for high-end AI accelerators because of its ability to integrate GPUs with high-bandwidth memory using a silicon interposer.