Intel (INTC) shares closed meaningfully higher on Thursday after the Bank of America Securities doubled-upgraded the tech giant to “Buy,” signaling immense confidence in its broader turnaround narrative.
In his research note, analyst Vivek Arya raised his price target on INTC to $135, indicating potential upside of more than 15% from the company’s current price.
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BofA’s bullish note adds to an already improving sentiment that’s driven Intel stock up a remarkable 215% year-to-date.
www.barchart.comHere’s Why Arya Double-Upgraded Intel Stock
Arya turned positive on INTC shares primarily because of the company’s data center revival.
According to him, the multinational will capture over $40 billion of a projected $170 billion server CPU market by the end of this decade.
In his report, the BofA expert highlighted a structural shift in data center architecture driven by AI; rather than being sidelined by GPUs, next-generation CPUs will play a critical role in orchestrating autonomous AI agents.
This evolution expands the CPU’s scope from basic server management to complex orchestration, positioning Intel to see its earnings exceed $6 per share within the next five years, he added.
Foundry Traction to Driven INTC Shares Higher
The second pillar of Arya’s double-upgrade rests mostly on Intel Foundry, which is seeing accelerating commercial traction in 2026.
Alphabet's (GOOG) (GOOGL) Google recently placed an order for more than 3 million Tensor Processing Units (TPUs) for 2028, while industry leader Nvidia (NVDA) is actively evaluating INTC’s advanced 18A process node as well.
In its research note, BofA also identified a solid pipeline of future deals, including Apple M-Series wafers, MediaTek TPUs, and ARM-based server opportunities, alongside a Cadence collaboration on the 14A node.
Meanwhile, Intel shares are trading at about 10x sales — a valuation multiple that appears modest given that the company is now fully plugged into the AI wave.
What’s the Consensus Rating on Intel?
Other Wall Street analysts, however, recommend caution in playing INTC stock at current levels.
According to Barchart, the consensus rating on Intel is “Hold," with the mean price target of about $90 indicating potential downside of a little under 25% from here.
www.barchart.com On the date of publication, Wajeeh Khan did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
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