Intel plunges as much as 26%, briefly on pace for its worst day since 1974

Intel's data center business just grew almost 80% in a year. Its outlook for the fourth quarter is sending the stock toward one of its worst days in half a century, erasing more than $100 billion in market value Friday.

Intel ( INTC ) stock fell as much as 26% Friday after the chipmaker's forecast for the final three months of the year came in well short of Wall Street's expectations.

Only two days in Intel's history were worse, according to Yahoo Finance calculations from Norgate Data closing prices going back to May 1973. The stock fell nearly 30% on July 5, 1974, and about 26% on Aug. 2, 2024.

A close below about $68 would top the 2024 drop and make Friday the worst day since 1974. Below about $64.50, it would be the worst on record.

The sell-off caps a wild year. Intel stock nearly quadrupled from the start of 2026 to its June 22 record. Even after Friday's drop, it's still up more than 80% this year, but it has given back about half its value since that peak.

It has also broken below the $80 zone that held at its July low, and it's on track for its lowest close since April 23. The next day, Intel had its best day since at least 1973, a gain of about 24%.

The quarter itself was strong. Intel topped estimates with adjusted earnings per share of $0.52, and data center revenue jumped to $7.3 billion.

The outlook is what broke the stock. Intel expects fourth quarter revenue of $15 billion to $16 billion, below the roughly $17 billion analysts expected, and earnings per share of $0.25 against forecasts of $0.43.

The PC market is the problem . AI data centers are soaking up the world's memory chips, pushing up prices for laptops and desktops. Intel now expects PC shipments to fall about 12% this year and another 10% in 2027. An accident at its Israel factory will cost about $300 million in fourth quarter revenue on top of that.

Bernstein analyst Stacy Rasgon called the outlook "(in a word) terrible" and cut his price target to $75 from $110.

PC makers Dell ( DELL ) and HP ( HPQ ) slid too, adding to a tech stock rout that has hit Alphabet ( GOOGL , GOOG ) and Amazon ( AMZN ) after their reports this week.

Intel said the PC slump won't let up until memory supply and prices return to normal.

"Rebuilding Intel is going to be a multiyear journey, and I remain firmly committed to making it happen," CEO Lip-Bu Tan said on Thursday's earnings call.

Internal AI tools helped analyze interview transcripts, research, and draft this post. Humans reviewed, edited, and fact-checked this post before publication.

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