Intel Corporation (INTC): a likely value trap?

Avoid for now — a spectacular turnaround story is already priced in, and the stock still burns cash with a huge earnings test in two days.

⚠ TRAP Fundamentals38/100

Down 28% from its all-time high of $133.99 — now $97.06

$141$17.7 20222023202420252026

Why INTC dropped

Intel has rocketed from about $18-37 in early 2025/2026 to today's ~$97 on a genuine turnaround narrative (government equity stake, Apple/Microsoft/AWS foundry talks, improving 18A chip yields), but it just fell about 30% from its June all-time high of $134 after a semiconductor sector selloff and reports that its 18A manufacturing yields may not be profitable until 2026-2027. Q2 earnings land July 23, two days from now, which the market is treating as a make-or-break event.

Fwd P/E 60.1Op margin 6.9%Rev growth 7.2%Debt/equity 36.0%Analyst upside 9.9%
How this scored 38/100 ❌ fails 1 hard check
❌ Fails 1 hard check — these are pass/fail and override the score entirely.
✅ Makes money Loss-making today, but operations are profitable (6.9%) and analysts expect positive earnings next year
❌ Generates cash burns cash (free cash flow $-8.3B)
✅ Not drowning in debt Debt/equity 36.0% (limit 200%)
✅ Can pay its bills Current ratio 2.3 (needs 1+)

Bar length shows how much each metric is worth — a 10-point metric is twice as wide as a 5-point one. Hover any row for what it means.

Profitability Does it actually make money? 2/25
Operating margin 6.9% 2/9
Net profit margin -5.9% 0/8
Return on equity -2.9% 0/8
Growth Is it getting bigger, or dying? 14/25
Revenue growth 7.2% 4/9
Earnings growth unknown 2/8
Expected profit change 364.5% 8/8
Value Is it cheap right now? 6/25
Forward P/E 60.1 0/10
PEG ratio 1.4 5/8
Analyst target upside 9.9% 1/7
Balance sheet Will it survive? 16/25
Debt / equity 36.0% 9/10
Current ratio 2.3 7/8
Free cash flow $-8.3B 0/7

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Analysis generated by SmartStonks's AI from public fundamentals and news, first flagged 2026-07-21. Research only — not financial advice.