Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) sure had a blockbuster 2025 but options traders seem to believe the stock could push higher still as the company reports its Q4 earnings on January 22nd.
The semiconductor giant was once thought of as “being eaten alive by Nvidia and AMD,” as famed investor Jim Cramer put it in a recent segment of CNBC – but then the board handed over the helm to Lip-Bu Tan, and things have been much kosher for INTC ever since.
Intel, for example, is broadly expected to post a “meaningful” profit of about 8 cents a share for its fourth quarter on about $13.37 billion in revenue.
At the time of writing, Intel stock is up a remarkable 160% versus its 52-week low.
Intel stock has a ‘unique window of opportunity’ in 2026
Heading into the earnings release, Citi’s senior analyst Atif Malik has ditched his “sell” rating on INTC shares.
Raising the Nasdaq-listed firm to “neutral”, Malik argued in his latest research note that Intel stock appears much more attractive now that “TSMC” has reportedly told its lead clients like Nvidia and Broadcom that it’s stretched thin on capacity.
According to him, this has unlocked a “unique window of opportunity” for Intel Foundry Services to win major customers and eliminate an overhang that’s haunted the company’s stock for months.
The semiconductor behemoth has right-sized its business and beefed up its balance sheet – which makes its stock all the more attractive to own in 2026, the Citi analyst added.
And the “Mad Money” host agrees: “once they cleaned up the balance sheet, Intel instantly became a much better story,” he told viewers last week.
Options data indicate near-term upside in INTC shares
Seasonality may play out in favour of Intel shares in the near-term as well.
Over the past 16 years, the semiconductor stock has inched over 2% higher in February.
Meanwhile, options data is also skewed to the upside. According to “Barchart”, contracts expiring April 17th currently signal a continued rally in INTC to about $56.
Even in the near-term, the implied move is 7.49% through the end of this week, which means Intel stock could rip higher to about $50.50 after the company’s upcoming earnings release on Jan. 22nd.
The options traders’ view is substantiated by INTC’s technicals as well.
The company is trading “well above” its major moving averages (MAs) with a long-term relative strength index (100-day) at 59, indicating the upward momentum isn’t over just yet.
Unlike many of its chip market peers, Intel remains an inexpensive name to own in 2026, given its price-to-sales (P/S) multiple sits at less than “4” currently – versus Nvidia’s at north of “34”.
How Wall Street recommends playing Intel Corp
Federal support and President Donald Trump’s recent social media post saying the US government is “proud to be an Intel shareholder” offer investors another macro factor to stick with INTC stock.
That’s why Wall Street firms haven’t thrown in the towel on Intel, even though challenges remain, and the company’s share price is already on course to nearly tripling within 12 months.
While the consensus rating on Intel shares remains at “hold” only, analysts’ price objectives on the Nasdaq-listed firm go as high as $60, indicating potential upside of another 27% from here.
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