Intel Corporation (INTC) shares surged in pre-market trading on Friday, January 9, 2026, building on momentum from Thursday’s extended trading session. The rally followed President Donald Trump’s enthusiastic endorsement of the chipmaker and CEO Lip-Bu Tan posted on Truth Social Thursday afternoon.
By 8:01:56 AM EST Friday, Intel stock climbed to $42.19, representing a 2.63% gain (+$1.08) from Thursday’s closing price of $41.11. The stock had initially jumped 2% in after-hours trading immediately following Trump’s message, as investors responded positively to the president’s praise of both the company’s leadership and the government’s stake in the semiconductor manufacturer.
Trump Praises Intel CEO and Federal Chip Funding
President Trump’s Truth Social post celebrated his meeting with Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan, calling him “very successful” and expressing pride in the U.S. government’s role as an Intel shareholder. In August 2025, the government acquired a 10% stake in Intel through an $8.9 billion investment from CHIPS Act grants and semiconductor manufacturing awards.
Trump emphasized that this investment has already generated “Tens of Billions of Dollars for the American People — IN JUST FOUR MONTHS,” with Intel shares soaring 75% since the investment was announced, lifting the government’s stake value to over $18 billion.
The president’s message highlighted Intel’s recent technological achievements, specifically the launch of sub-2-nanometer CPU processors at CES 2026. Trump declared that Intel had launched “the first SUB 2 NANOMETER CPU PROCESSOR designed, built, and packaged right here in the U.S.A.”
This announcement came after Intel unveiled its Core Ultra Series 3 chips using the advanced 18A process node earlier in the week at the Las Vegas trade show. The chipmaker has committed tens of billions of dollars toward creating a domestic chip fabrication business as part of the broader effort to bring leading-edge semiconductor manufacturing back to American soil.
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INTC Shares Rebound as Investors React
As of January 9, 2026, Intel stock closed at $41.11 on January 8, down $1.52 (-3.57%) during regular trading hours. However, the stock rebounded strongly in pre-market trading on January 9, rising to $42.19, up $1.08 (+2.63%) by 8:01:56 AM EST.
The company’s market capitalization stands at $196.095 billion, with a 52-week range between $17.67 and $44.57. Despite challenges in recent years, including market share losses to competitors like AMD and Nvidia, Intel remains a key supplier of processors for PCs and computer servers with 88,400 full-time employees.
Intel’s recent performance has been marked by significant volatility and strategic shifts under new CEO Lip-Bu Tan, who replaced Pat Gelsinger in March 2025. The company announced major layoffs in July and pulled back on some chip production plans in the U.S. and Europe, with an Ohio plant now scheduled to come online in 2030 or 2031.
Analysts have responded positively to Intel’s latest product launches, with Melius Research upgrading the stock to “Buy” with a $50 price target on January 5, 2026. The average analyst price target sits at $38.31, suggesting mixed sentiment about the company’s recovery prospects as it seeks to capitalize on partnerships and technological advancements in the AI chip market.
Disclaimer: The author does not hold or have a position in any securities discussed in the article. All stock prices were quoted at the time of writing.
About the author
Tim Fries is the cofounder of The Tokenist. He has a B. Sc. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan, and an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. Tim served as a Senior Associate on the investment team at RW Baird’s US Private Equity division, and is also the co-founder of Protective Technologies Capital, an investment firm specializing in sensing, protection and control solutions.