Chip stock Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) depends on its processors for its lifeblood, and new processors tend to catch users’ attention as they look forward to what the next generation of chips will do. Investors got a new look at the next generation of chips, and the leak proved effective for Intel, as shares rose fractionally in Friday afternoon’s trading.
A look at the new Arrow Lake Core Ultra 200 series that leaked recently offers some interesting parallels. While the Arrow Lakes will have the same core count as the recently-refreshed Raptor Lake lineup did, the Arrow Lakes will actually, somehow, have fewer threads. The Arrow Lakes will have 13 individual classes, and reports suggest that it will turn to a “chiplet” design (a tiny integrated circuit that can be combined with other chiplets), which is similar to how Meteor Lake operated.
It’s not clear just how the chips will be designed as yet, but some reports suggest that Intel may use its Lion Cove line of P-cores alongside a set of Skymont E-cores, and hyper-threading may actually be out of the picture, prompting interested speculation at seeing what the actual designs look like.
One Serious First-Mover Advantage
Meanwhile, other plans have emerged that suggest Intel is looking to be a serious force in manufacturing. That’s not much of a surprise, but the lengths to which it will go might prove to be. Intel reportedly picked up all of ASML’s (NASDAQ:ASML) stock of high numerical aperture (high-NA) lithography machines. That’s going to make Intel the only game in town for high-NA lithography for the foreseeable future until ASML can get some more built and even offer them to Intel’s competitors. That’s a serious first-mover advantage and one that Intel’s competitors likely won’t match for weeks if not months.
Is Intel a Buy, Hold, or Sell?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Hold consensus rating on INTC stock based on four Buys, 23 Holds, and four Sells assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 5.76% rally in its share price over the past year, the average INTC price target of $39.92 per share implies 32.43% upside potential.
