After years of struggle for Intel (INTC 5.20%), its 84% stock price surge in 2025 offered shareholders some confidence that a turnaround was taking shape at the chipmaker.
Investors were looking for signs that its momentum could carry over into 2026, but Intel's shares dropped by 6.5% in February, showing how quickly confidence can shift.
Here's what made the market reevaluate the situation.
Source image: Getty Images.
The Intel slump
On its fourth-quarter earnings call in January, Intel worried investors with the guidance it offered for the current quarter.
For Q1, management forecast that its revenue will be between $11.7 billion and $12.7 billion. The first quarter has historically been a seasonally weaker period for Intel, but as management noted, the $12.2 billion midpoint of that guidance range would be on the low side even relative to that standard.
NASDAQ: INTC
Key Data Points
While Wall Street analysts' $12.6 billion consensus estimate fell within the guidance range, the midpoint sat below it, which contributed to investor worry.
Another thing that investors remain concerned about is Intel's ability to position itself as a go-to chipmaker for other companies. Its foundry business lost $2.5 billion in Q4, and CEO Lip-Bu Tan warned shareholders that it will not be an easy road ahead: "As I have said before, building a foundry business will take time and considerable effort and resources," he said during the earnings conference call.
All of those concerns from the January earnings report followed Intel stock into February. The slump we're seeing now could continue through March as well, as it may take a piece of unexpected good news to offset shareholders' currently muted expectations and change the stock's trajectory.
