Worst Finally Over? Intel To Move Forward With Assessing Strategic Transactions This Month

The dumpster fire at Intel under the direction of CEO Pat Gelsinger, who is doing his best to replace Marissa Mayer as most overpaid and useless ‘turnaround’ CEO in tech history, looks like it could finally wind up being put out as a result of the company assessing strategic alternatives.

But the damage has surely been done. Intel stock has fallen about -56% this year so far while competitor Nvidia has soared more than 141% over the same period. Over a 5 year period, it gets even uglier: Intel has plunged -53.4% while Nvidia is up an astounding 2,750%. 

However, past performance is not indicative of future results, and CEO Gelsinger is looking to finally try and claw some value back into Intel shares by proposing a number of strategic transactions to the board later this month, Reuters reported last week. 

Gelsinger and top executives plan to propose a strategy to the board later this month to cut non-essential businesses and reduce capital spending, aiming to revitalize the chipmaker, the report says, mimicking a lot of ‘turn around’ talk we’ve heard from Intel during Gelsinger’s tenure over the last 3 years. 

The plan includes cost-cutting measures like selling businesses, such as the programmable chip unit Altera, which Intel can no longer support from its dwindling profits, according to a source.

Gelsinger and senior executives are set to present a plan to the board in mid-September to cut costs and streamline operations, the report says.

This plan does not propose splitting Intel or selling its foundry business to a company like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. However, the details are still being finalized and could change before the meeting.

As Reuters notes, Intel has already separated its foundry and design businesses and reports their financials separately to protect client confidentiality. The company is struggling as it lags behind competitors like Nvidia in the AI chip market.

Intel’s market cap has fallen below $100 billion after a poor second-quarter earnings report, while Nvidia’s exceeds $3 trillion.

The new proposal is likely to suggest further cuts in capital spending, possibly halting the $32 billion factory project in Germany, which has faced delays. In August, Intel announced plans to reduce capital spending to $21.5 billion by 2025, down 17% from this year, and issued a weaker-than-expected third-quarter forecast.