Intel Q4: What to know ahead of earnings

• Intel Corp’s (NASDAQ: INTC) share price is up over 25% in the last one month
• Shares spiked up as much as 11% last Thursday (14 January), a day after the company named a new CEO
• The chip maker also said in the same update that it expects to beat earlier Q4 2020 revenue and EPS estimates
• Analysts foresee a 4.3% share price upside in the next 12 months
• Looking to trade Intel shares? Open an IG account today.

US PC chip manufacturer Intel (NYSE: INTC) is scheduled to report results for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2020 after market close on Thursday 21 January 2021.

Below, we highlight some key stock fundamentals that investors should consider ahead of Intel’s upcoming earnings report.

Intel’s stock price is up over 25% since December 2020

The Intel stock has rallied as much as 28.3% since end December 2020, following a series of company announcements.

First, shares caught fire on 29 December 2020, after it was reported by Reuters that hedge fund Third Point had acquired a significant stake in the chip maker and possessed a US$1 billion stake in the company.

It was also revealed that the fund was pushing Intel to explore strategic alternatives, including moving away from manufacturing.

In a letter to Intel, Third Point wrote: ‘Without immediate change at Intel, we fear that America's access to leading-edge semiconductor supply will erode, forcing the U.S. to rely more heavily on a geopolitically unstable East Asia to power everything from PCs to data centres to critical infrastructure and more.’

Then last week, shares skyrocketed over 11% to peak at a six-month high of US$59.25 on 14 January 2021, a day after the company announced that its current CEO Bob Swan will be replaced by 40-year technology veteran and VMware chief Pat Gelsinger from 15 February 2021.

Intel also said in the same update that it expects its fourth-quarter 2020 revenue and earnings per share (EPS) to exceed its prior guidance provided on 22 October 2020.

It further noted that it has made strong progress on its 7nm process technology and plans on providing an update when it reports its results this Thursday.

Intel closed at US$58 a share on Tuesday (19 January 2021).

Intel rated ‘buy’ by Wall Street

Across the board, Adobe currently has a majority rating of ‘buy’ from 19 out of 43 brokers polled by MarketBeat.

The stock has also received an average 12-month share price target of S$60.47 per share, as of 20 January 2021.

This represents a small upside of 4.3% from the last traded price, which could indicate that the stock is trading around its peak market value.

The latest price estimate came from UBS, who initiated a ‘buy’ rating alongside a target price of US$71 on 19 January.

Meanwhile, DZ Bank analyst Ingo Wermann upgraded his Intel rating to ‘hold’ from ‘sell’ with a US$62 price target on 14 January.

On the other hand, Rosenblatt Securities brokers were much more bearish on the stock’s price outlook, reiterating a ‘sell’ call and US$40 share price target on 19 January.

The analysts foresee a continued decline in quarterly revenue, even though there is a possibility of near-term seasonal increase in overall declining CPU market share.

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