NEW YORK, Feb 26, 2026, 18:14 EST — After-hours
- Intel shares fell about 3% in Thursday’s regular session, snapping a two-day rise.
- Chip stocks pulled back as investors weighed Nvidia’s outlook and spending plans.
- Focus turns to coming U.S. inflation data and Intel’s next investor appearance.
Intel shares fell 3.0% to $45.46 in Thursday’s regular session and were little changed after the bell, as a late selloff in chip stocks followed a volatile reaction to Nvidia’s results. The stock had climbed 1.65% on Wednesday. 1
The move matters because Nvidia’s print is still setting the tone for AI-linked semiconductors, and this time the market flinched. Nvidia slid as investors looked past strong numbers and focused on how much cash the company plans to plow back into the AI ecosystem rather than return to shareholders, analysts said. 2
That shift in mood puts Intel back in the crosshairs. Nvidia’s Jensen Huang told analysts, “We love CPUs as well as GPUs,” as he prepared investors for a renewed fight in data-center processors — long a core market for Intel and AMD — with Nvidia pushing its own CPU lineup. 3
Some of the debate is about plumbing, not just products. ASML said its next-generation High-NA EUV lithography tools are ready for high-volume production use, a milestone the company said should help chipmakers including Intel build more advanced chips while cutting steps in manufacturing — though full integration is still expected to take years. 4
Rates-sensitive tech is also staring at a busy tape. Weekly U.S. jobless claims stayed low, while investors are watching Friday’s producer price index, next week’s February jobs report and the U.S. PCE inflation release in mid-March for clues on policy and risk appetite. 5
Intel’s own backdrop is still defined by a cautious near-term outlook. In its January filing, the company projected first-quarter revenue of $11.7 billion to $12.7 billion and a non-GAAP gross margin of 34.5%, a range that left little room for stumbles in demand or execution. 6
But the downside case is simple: if the market keeps marking down the “AI spend now, profit later” trade, the whole group can stay heavy — and Intel does not have much patience built into the story given the competitive pressure in data centers and the scrutiny on its manufacturing plans.
Traders’ next company-specific waypoint is March 4, when Intel CFO David Zinsner is set to speak at Morgan Stanley’s Technology, Media & Telecom Conference, an event investors often use to probe demand, supply constraints and the timing of roadmap milestones. 7
