So chip stock Intel (INTC) just lost Justin Hotard to Nokia Oyj (NOK). This might seem like a blow to Intel’s operations, but investors have shrugged it off in a big way. Hotard will be taking over as Nokia’s CEO starting April 1. But investors rejoiced, and sent Intel shares up over 3.5% in Monday afternoon’s trading.
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Hotard is, presently, the head of both Intel’s artificial intelligence operations as well as its data center operations. Given Intel’s recent lagging in both markets, this may be part of why Intel is glad to be rid of Hotard in favor of someone else who might get those sectors fired up once more. Hotard was also formerly with NCR Corp and Hewlett-Packard Enterprise (HPE).
In describing Hotard’s record, Nokia board chair Sari Baldauf noted that Hotard “…has a strong track record of accelerating growth in technology companies along with vast expertise in AI and data-center markets, which are critical areas for Nokia’s future growth.” Given that reports suggest Intel has been lagging in generative AI that have been out since at least November of last year, it is unclear just how much boost Hotard will bring to that market.
Better News for the Ultra 200
In a much more certain bit of good news for Intel, reports note that the Core Ultra 200 line of chips is delivering significant—and impressive—performance improvements. In fact, some reports call it the “…most powerful mainstream laptop processor…” Intel has put out yet. There are, however, some concerns about its performance in AI.
Interestingly, reports note, the first processor in the Core Ultra 200 line—also known as the Core 285H—started out life as a desktop processor, and failed to deliver much in the way of results. However, as a laptop processor, the Core 285H basically doubled the performance of its immediate predecessor, the Core Ultra 200V line.
Is Intel a Buy, Hold or Sell?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Hold consensus rating on INTC stock based on one Buy, 26 Holds and five Sells assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 54.55% loss in its share price over the past year, the average INTC price target of $21.94 per share implies 14.9% upside potential.
