What happened
Parts of Wall Street are slowly turning more positive on semiconductors, and Intel (INTC 4.88%) is getting a lift as a result. Shares of the chipmaker traded up 3.7% as of 2:15 p.m. ET on Monday after a pair of price target boosts from analysts.
So what
Semiconductors have always been a cyclical industry, and Intel shares have been caught in the ugly part of the cycle. The stock is down 41% over the past year on falling global demand for personal computers and fears that a slowing economy would eat into tech spending in 2023.
But there is at least some indication that some analysts believe the sell-off has gone far enough. On Monday, Truist analyst William Stein raised his price target to $33, from $29, while keeping a hold rating on the shares. Stein wrote that while he is broadly pessimistic about 2023, he does anticipate a recovery in 2024.
Should this cycle be similar to past ones, semiconductor stocks could be set up to deliver more than a 100% return over the next two years, according to Stein.
Susquehanna analyst Christopher Rolland was out with a similarly tepid endorsement. Rolland raised his price target to $24, from $22, and kept a negative rating on the shares. The analyst said the personal computer market remains challenged in the neat term, but cost-cutting will offset some of the declines and expectations among investors remain low.
NASDAQ: INTC
Key Data Points
Now what
These are hardly glowing endorsements, with Rolland's revised price target still well below where Intel trades today. But they are at least a sign that perhaps, after a year of brutal selling, we are to a point where Intel shares can stabilize.
Intel over the past 10 years has failed to match the magic of the late 1990s, but it remains an important supplier of semiconductors at a time when more and more devices are becoming "smart" and more chips are needed. Our connected future is going to need a lot more chips, and Intel should have a big role to play in fulfilling that need.
It might not all come together in the next few quarters, but it appears there is at least some hope among investors today that the worst is finally behind Intel for this cycle.
