Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) did something Friday that took 26 years to accomplish — it traded above its dot-com-era peak set in the year 2000. With shares surging more than 22% on the heels of a blowout first-quarter earnings report, the stock cleared a ceiling that had capped rallies multiple times over the past two decades and is now trading in price discovery territory for the first time since the internet bubble.
The catalyst was a Q1 2026 earnings print that demolished Wall Street expectations across every key metric. Intel posted revenue of $13.6 billion, up 7% year-over-year, against analyst consensus that had penciled in closer to $12.4 billion. Non-GAAP earnings per share came in at $0.29, crushing the $0.01 estimate. For context, that’s a 28-cent beat on the bottom line — a number that tells you just how badly the Street had underestimated Intel’s momentum heading into the quarter.
The segment doing the heavy lifting is Data Center and AI. That division posted revenue growth of 22% year-over-year, making it Intel’s fastest-growing area. More telling: AI-driven business revenue surged 40% year-over-year, marking the sixth consecutive quarter in which the company exceeded its own guidance. Intel Foundry — its contract manufacturing arm — also contributed meaningfully, bringing in $5.4 billion, up 20% sequentially.
It’s worth noting that Intel did report a GAAP net loss of $3.7 billion for the quarter, driven primarily by $4.1 billion in restructuring and other charges, including a Mobileye goodwill impairment. That number is real and matters, but the market’s reaction tells you investors are focused on the operating trajectory — not the one-time write-downs.
The technical story is just as significant as the fundamental one. Intel had been trapped below its 2000 peak for over two decades, with failed breakout attempts in both 2020 and 2021. The stock had already staged a remarkable recovery before earnings, rising more than 60% off its March 30 low and adding roughly $130 billion in market value in that stretch. Friday’s move didn’t just extend that rally — it changed the long-term chart structure entirely.
Intel isn’t alone in its momentum. The PHLX Semiconductor Index is currently on a 17-consecutive-day winning streak, one of the longest runs in the index’s history. The entire chip complex has been repriced higher as AI infrastructure buildout accelerates and demand for advanced silicon continues to outstrip supply.
Management guided Q2 2026 revenue to a range of $13.8 to $14.8 billion, with non-GAAP EPS of $0.20 and a non-GAAP gross margin of 39% — forward guidance that signals the company expects its momentum to hold.
The key watch now is whether Intel can close at a record high above $75.83 by the end of Friday’s session. A confirmed close above that level would be a landmark moment for one of the most watched charts in technology. A retreat back below $65, however, would reframe this move as a failed breakout — and signal the stock needs more time before it can sustain new all-time highs.
Either way, Intel’s earnings don’t just matter for INTC shareholders. They’re a read-through for semiconductor capital spending, AI chip demand, and the broader thesis that the CPU — not just the GPU — has a critical role in the next wave of AI infrastructure.
