In a bit of a surprise turnaround, Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) chips were found to be part of a disastrous new bug that may have been around longer than we think. Yet, despite this potentially crippling vulnerability, Intel shares were up nearly 2% in Friday afternoon’s trading.
The reports refer to CVE-2024-0762, which is also referred to as—and brace yourself for this—“UEFIcanhazbufferoverflow” a condition which impacts a wide range of Intel processors involved in Phoenix Technologies’ SecureCore Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) firmware. Reports note that the issue was first uncovered in May, but was recently expounded on and clarified by Eclypsium researchers. The issue involves a faulty call to to a GetVariable runtime service, which from there could potentially be used as a means to breach security, using the faulty call as a way to grant certain users—like hackers—unusual system privileges, which would potentially give them access to stored data.
More Job Cuts and a Tough Fight Ahead
And if that weren’t enough already, new reports emerge that say Intel is planning more job cuts. While it’s not talking about the numbers, or even exactly where, a confidential source within Intel noted that business units are making decisions about where to cut costs, and that will likely mean staffing cuts along with it. This is part of a larger push at Intel to pursue market share lost to the likes of Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA), and, backed up by $8.5 billion in taxpayer money from the CHIPS Act, Intel is eager to put its aspirations as a full-blown chip foundry to work.
Is Intel a Buy, Sell or Hold?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Hold consensus rating on INTC stock based on three Buys, 26 Holds and three Sells assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 3.44% loss in its share price over the past year, the average INTC price target of $38.02 per share implies 22.33% upside potential.
