Intel Corporation will release its second-quarter earnings report after the closing bell on Thursday, July 23. Analysts expect the Santa Clara-based semiconductor giant to report quarterly earnings of 22 cents per share, a significant improvement from the loss of 10 cents per share in the year-ago period. The consensus estimate for Intel’s quarterly revenue is $14.45 billion, up from $12.86 billion reported last year. This update refines earlier expectations of $14.40 billion in revenue and 19 cents per share, reflecting growing confidence in the company’s operational turnaround.

Analyst Revisions and Price Targets

Several high-accuracy analysts have revised their forecasts for Intel ahead of the earnings call. UBS analyst Timothy Arcuri, who has an accuracy rate of 87%, maintained a Neutral rating but boosted the price target from $83 to $121 on July 13, 2026. Morgan Stanley analyst Joseph Moore, with an 82% accuracy rate, maintained an Equal-Weight rating and raised the price target from $73 to $75 on July 20, 2026.

Other notable revisions include:

• Susquehanna analyst Christopher Rolland (81% accuracy) maintained a Neutral rating and boosted the price target from $80 to $115 on July 16, 2026.
• Keybanc analyst John Vinh (78% accuracy) maintained an Overweight rating and raised the price target from $110 to $155 on July 14, 2026.
• TD Cowen analyst Sean O’Loughlin (57% accuracy) maintained a Hold rating and increased the price target from $75 to $115 on July 13, 2026.

Strategic Developments and Market Context

On July 21, Intel and Fortinet announced a strategic collaboration to develop the Fortinet Security Processor 6, signaling continued expansion in security-focused silicon solutions. Despite these positive developments, Intel shares fell 2.7% to close at $102.62 on Wednesday, July 22. The stock remains volatile, with options markets previously pricing in a 13.22% move implying roughly $68.3 billion of market value at stake.

Supply Constraints and AI Demand

The upcoming report serves as a key test for CEO Lip-Bu Tan’s projections regarding supply constraints. During the first-quarter earnings call in April, Tan stated that demand continued to outpace supply, particularly for Xeon server CPUs. CFO David Zinsner noted that first-quarter revenue "would have been meaningfully higher" if more supply had been available, expressing expectations for supply to improve in the second quarter. Industry-wide shortages persist, with Micron Technology Inc CEO Sanjay Mehrotra noting in June that memory supply would not catch up with AI-driven demand beyond 2027.

What the Numbers Show

The upward revision in earnings estimates—from 19 cents to 22 cents per share—suggests that supply constraints may be easing faster than initially anticipated or that pricing power in key segments like data center processors has strengthened. The widening gap between the consensus revenue estimate ($14.45 billion) and the prior year’s figure ($12.86 billion) indicates robust top-line growth, potentially driven by increased adoption of Intel’s AI-enabled chips. However, the recent 2.7% drop in share price hints at investor caution ahead of the actual results, possibly due to broader market volatility or concerns about margin pressure despite revenue growth.

Intel Corp. shares rose more than 5% during Tuesday’s session as traders responded to the chipmaker’s advancements in AI infrastructure and strategic restructuring. The company is optimizing its Xeon 6 platform for data-intensive AI workloads and expanding its partnership with Alphabet Inc.’s Google Cloud, while simultaneously executing workforce reductions in its Data Center and AI Group. These moves come as Intel prepares to report its second-quarter earnings on July 23, 2026, with Wall Street anticipating a return to profitability.

Memory Performance and AI Integration

Intel is targeting significant improvements in memory bandwidth on its Xeon 6 platform to support evolving AI demands. The company plans to support 1DPC 8000 MT/s RDIMM functionality on select Intel Xeon 6700P SKUs. This upgrade is expected to deliver a 25% increase in memory speed over current 6400 MT/s RDIMMs and reduce memory latency by 6%. The shift to 8000 MT/s RDIMM memory can provide up to 20% more total memory bandwidth, facilitating more efficient data movement for CPUs, AI accelerators, and storage. Production availability is targeted for the August-to-September 2026 timeframe.

Google Cloud Partnership Expansion

Intel and Alphabet Inc.’s Google Cloud have expanded their multi-year partnership to accelerate Intel’s AI-driven enterprise transformation. Under the agreement, Intel will deploy Gemini Enterprise across engineering, supply chain, and corporate operations. The collaboration leverages Google Cloud infrastructure to power AI agents, automate workflows, and accelerate chip development through scalable high-performance computing. Additionally, Intel will utilize AI tools for coding, marketing, and communications, building on existing efforts to optimize next-generation AI infrastructure.

Restructuring and Technical Outlook

CEO Lip-Bu Tan continues a broader restructuring effort with a new round of layoffs affecting employees in the Data Center and AI Group. The company stated these cuts are intended to streamline operations and position the business for long-term growth rather than signal a shift in product strategy. This unit generated $5.05 billion in first-quarter 2026 revenue, up 22% from the prior year. The reductions follow a plan to reduce Intel’s global workforce by about 15%, with more than 5,000 U.S.-based employees already laid off in 2025.

Technically, the stock remains in a longer-term uptrend, trading 58.4% above its 200-day SMA of $64.49. However, near-term momentum has cooled, with shares trading 13.2% below the 20-day SMA of $117.65 and 12.6% below the 50-day SMA of $116.95. The moving-average structure remains constructive, maintaining a golden cross formed in August 2025.

Earnings and Analyst Expectations

Analysts expect Intel to report earnings of 19 cents per share on $14.40 billion in revenue for the upcoming quarter, a turnaround from a loss of 10 cents per share on $12.86 billion in the prior-year quarter. The stock holds a consensus Hold rating with an average price forecast of $98.77. Recent analyst actions include Morgan Stanley raising its forecast to $75.00, Susquehanna to $115.00, and Keybanc to $155.00.