Intel Q1 2026 Earnings Miss: EPS -$0.06 vs +$0.01 Expected — Stock Had Surged 74% YTD
# Intel Q1 2026 Earnings Miss: EPS -$0.06 vs +$0.01 Expected — Stock Had Surged 74% YTD
> **Quick answer:** Intel reported Q1 2026 EPS of -$0.06, a significant miss versus the +$0.01 analyst consensus. Free cash flow came in at -$1.02 per share. The results hit after the close on Thursday, April 23 — after the stock had already surged 74% year-to-date on foundry and AI optimism. The miss puts Intel's turnaround narrative under serious scrutiny and sets up a sharp after-hours reaction.
Intel's Q1 2026 earnings miss landed Thursday evening, and it is the kind of print that forces every investor holding INTC to ask the uncomfortable question: was the 74% rally a legitimate repricing of the business — or was it hype running ahead of the fundamentals?
The answer, based on Q1 2026 actuals, leans toward hype.
## What Intel Actually Reported: The Numbers That Missed
Intel Q1 2026 earnings miss EPS INTC stock data tells a straightforward story. The company posted adjusted EPS of **-$0.06**, versus the Wall Street consensus of **+$0.01**. That is a $0.07 miss — small in absolute terms, but enormous in narrative terms for a stock trading at 128x forward earnings.