Intel Shares Surge Since 1987, Up to 24%
Intel’s shares surged sharply by up to 24% during trading on Friday (24/4/2026), recording the best daily performance since October 1987. This jump occurred alongside growing investor optimism towards signs of the company’s revival amid the intense demand for artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
According to CNBC, the shares of the US-based semiconductor company closed at US$82.57 and have strengthened by 124% throughout this year, following a 84% surge throughout 2025. This latest increase even surpassed the 23% jump on 18 September, when Nvidia agreed to a US$5 billion investment in Intel.
Under the leadership of CEO Lip-Bu Tan, who took office early last year, investor interest has recovered. He is credited with improving the company’s financial position, attracting investment from the US government during the Donald Trump era, and steering Intel back into the AI business whirlwind, where it had previously lagged behind.
“The new Intel CEO has repaired the balance sheet and executed a strategy that appears to bring Intel back on a competitive path,” said an Evercore ISI analyst in their report, which also upgraded the company’s stock recommendation to equivalent to buy.
In terms of performance, Intel recorded first-quarter revenue of US$13.58 billion, surpassing market expectations and growing 7.2% compared to US$12.67 billion in the same period last year. This serves as a signal of recovery after the company experienced year-on-year revenue declines in five of the previous seven quarters. Intel also provided a more optimistic performance guidance for the second quarter.
This stock rally marks a sharp turnaround after Intel had lost 60% of its market value in 2024, which led to the ousting of the previous CEO, Pat Gelsinger, in December of that year.
Over the past few years, Intel has lagged in the AI race due to production constraints and has not yet secured major customers for its chip fabrication business. However, the company is now showing progress, although several analysts are still awaiting evidence of success in its next-generation manufacturing technology, 14A, targeted for launch in 2028 or later.
Previously, Intel had stated it would wait for the arrival of major customers before pouring large investments into that technology. However, in January, Tan stated that the company would “go all out on 14A technology.”
In the latest performance presentation, he also revealed that “several customers are currently actively evaluating that technology,” with developments described as faster than the previous 18A technology.
The main driver of current growth comes from the data centre business. Revenue in this segment jumped 22% to US$5.1 billion compared to last year, in line with increasing demand for central processing units (CPUs) in the AI era. Tan emphasised that CPUs are an “irreplaceable foundation in the artificial intelligence era.”
Meanwhile, analysts from Citi also upgraded Intel’s stock recommendation from neutral to buy, with projections for increased CPU sales among all suppliers in the coming years.