TSMC's Stock Declines Following Lawsuit Against Former Executive for Allegedly Stealing Trade Secrets for Intel

Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst

INTC-16.56%

Source: CNBC

Updated: Nov 25 2025

0mins

Source: CNBC

Lawsuit Filed: TSMC has filed a lawsuit against former senior vice president Wei-Jen Lo for allegedly leaking confidential information to Intel after his departure from the company.
Allegations and Investigation: The lawsuit cites violations of Lo's employment contract and the Trade Secrets Act, with Taiwan's High Prosecutors opening an investigation into the matter.
Market Reaction: Following the lawsuit announcement, TSMC's share price dropped over 3%, while Intel's stock also saw a decline of 1.5%.
Intel's Response: Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan stated that the company respects intellectual property rights and denied any wrongdoing related to the allegations.

INTC

$45.325+Infinity%1D

Analyst Views on INTC

Wall Street analysts forecast INTC stock price to fall over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for INTC is 39.30 USD with a low forecast of 20.00 USD and a high forecast of 52.00 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.

29 Analyst Rating

5 Buy

19 Hold

5 Sell

Hold

Current: 54.320

Low

20.00

Averages

39.30

High

52.00

Current: 54.320

Low

20.00

Averages

39.30

High

52.00

KeyBanc

Overweight

maintain

$60 -> $65

2026-01-23

New

Reason

KeyBanc

Price Target

$60 -> $65

AI Analysis

2026-01-23

New

maintain

Overweight

Reason

KeyBanc raised the firm's price target on Intel (INTC) to $65 from $60 and keeps an Overweight rating on the shares. The firm notes Intel posted strong Q4 results and guided Q1 2026 below. Upside was driven by strong server CPU demand, as DCAI grew 15% quarter-over-quarter, while Q1 revenue/gross margin were guided lower due to peak constraints, as lower revenues and the initial 18A ramp are dilutive to gross margin. However, capacity is expected to increase with above-seasonal growth expected for the rest of the year. The company did not confirm Apple (AAPL) as an IFS win but indicated customers are expected to make foundry decisions on 14A in the second half of 2026.

Citi

Neutral

maintain

$50 -> $48

2026-01-23

New

Reason

Citi

Price Target

$50 -> $48

2026-01-23

New

maintain

Neutral

Reason

Citi lowered the firm's price target on Intel to $48 from $50 and keeps a Neutral rating on the shares. The company's March quarter outlook missed estimates on lower gross margins due to supply constraints, the analyst tells investors in a research note. Citi believes Intel's gross margins could remain pressured.

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JPMorgan

Underweight

maintain

$30 -> $35

2026-01-23

New

Reason

JPMorgan

Price Target

$30 -> $35

2026-01-23

New

maintain

Underweight

Reason

JPMorgan raised the firm's price target on Intel to $35 from $30 and keeps an Underweight rating on the shares. The company's quarterly results were stronger than expected, but its guidance came in well short of expectations, the analyst tells investors in a research note. JPMorgan still views Intel as being at risk of further share loss in its product businesses.

Roth Capital

Neutral

maintain

$40 -> $50

2026-01-22

New

Reason

Roth Capital

Price Target

$40 -> $50

2026-01-22

New

maintain

Neutral

Reason

Roth Capital raised the firm's price target on Intel to $50 from $40 and keeps a Neutral rating on the shares. The company reported strong Q4 data center demand but guided for seasonally weaker Q1 revenue and gross margin contraction, impacted by manufacturing constraint limitations, the analyst tells investors in a research note. Roth adds that it expects 2026 growth support from strong AI data center demand for the company's x86 CPUs and looks for newer client processors and foundry/packaging customer traction to drive intermediate-term growth, the firm added.

About INTC

Intel Corporation is a global designer and manufacturer of semiconductor products. The Company operates through three segments: Intel Products, Intel Foundry, and All Other. Its Intel Products segment includes Client Computing Group (CCG), Data Center and AI (DCAI), Network and Edge (NEX). The CCG is bringing together the operating system, system architecture, hardware, and software application integration to enable PC experiences. DCAI delivers workload-optimized solutions to cloud service providers and enterprises, along with silicon devices for communications service providers, network and edge, and HPC customers. NEX helps networks and edge compute systems from fixed-function hardware to general-purpose compute, acceleration, and networking devices running cloud native software on programmable hardware. The Intel Foundry segment comprises technology development, manufacturing and foundry services. All Other segments include Altera, Mobileye, Other.

About the author

Emily J. Thompson

Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.