Key Takeaways
- President Trump said he had a “great meeting” with Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan, sending shares of the chipmaker soaring Friday.
- Trump said the government is “proud” to be a major Intel shareholder after taking a 10% stake in the chipmaker last year.
Intel’s stock hit its highest point in nearly two years Friday, thanks to a social media post.
The chipmaker’s stock was up nearly 10% in recent trading, making it one of the best-performing stocks in the S&P 500 Friday after President Trump praised Intel (INTC) CEO Lip-Bu Tan on social media.
“I just finished a great meeting with the very successful Intel CEO, Lip-Bu Tan,” Trump said in a Truth Social post Thursday, and that the U.S. government is “proud” to be an Intel shareholder.
Just a few months earlier, Trump had pushed for Lip-Bu Tan to resign amid concerns about Tan’s stakes in Chinese companies. However, Trump changed his tune just days later after meeting with the CEO in August, and brokered a deal that saw the U.S. government take a 10% stake in the chipmaker.
Why This Matters to Investors
Intel’s stock has gotten a big boost from Trump’s show of support, though it remains well off its historical highs as the embattled chipmaker works to convince investors of a sustainable turnaround in its business.
A high-profile partnership with Nvidia (NVDA) followed not long after the government announced its stake, helped lift Intel’s stock in the second half of last year, along with rumors about potential new customers. The shares nearly doubled in value last year, with most of those gains coming between early August and December.
Intel’s recent gains have also made the stock one of the top performers in the S&P 500 to start the year, with shares adding close to one-quarter of their value in January so far.
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A number of other semiconductor stocks followed Intel higher Friday, including Broadcom (AVGO), Micron Technology (MU), and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), contributing to a broader market rally that pushed the S&P 500 to a new high.