JPMorgan's Harlan Sur Ends Four-Year Underweight Stance on Intel (INTC)

JPMorgan analyst Harlan Sur upgraded Intel (INTC) from Underweight on Monday, ending a nearly four-year bearish call as the stock traded about 36% below its June high, based on the prior Friday close. Intel shares rose 2.4% on Monday. Sur stopped short of a Buy rating but said he no longer expects Intel to keep lagging the market. He pointed to improved competitiveness in data-center chips since Lip-Bu Tan became CEO in 2025, with data-center and AI server operations now Intel's largest profit source. He also cited the custom chip business and progress on new process nodes as evidence of manufacturing and intellectual-property strength. Sur said he wants more proof Intel can rebuild CPU revenue share lost to Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) and make further gains in data-center networking. About 62% of analysts rate Intel Neutral or equivalent and 37% bullish, according to FactSet. Rosenblatt Securities' Kevin Cassidy is the only remaining bear.