Intel Gains on Report That Qualcomm Made Takeover Approach

(Bloomberg) — Intel Corp. shares soared after the Wall Street Journal reported that Qualcomm Inc. approached the company about a takeover, a potential record-setting deal for the chip industry.

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The discussions occurred in recent days, the newspaper said, citing unnamed people familiar with the situation. Representatives for Intel and Qualcomm declined to comment.

The shares jumped as much as 9.5% to $23.14 in New York trading Friday, rebounding from a decline earlier in the day. They had been down 58% this year through Thursday.

Intel, once the world’s largest chipmaker, has been struggling with flagging sales and mounting losses. The company’s market valuation, at less than $100 billion, is now roughly half of Qualcomm’s. Still, a takeover would be the largest-ever transaction for the semiconductor market and potentially transform the industry.

Shares of San Diego-based Qualcomm declined as much as 5.5%, reflecting investors’ concerns about such a deal.

Intel, based in Santa Clara, California, announced a raft of changes this week aimed at getting its business back on track. The moves included a multibillion-dollar deal with Amazon.com Inc. to make a custom AI semiconductor and a plan to turn Intel’s ailing manufacturing business into a wholly owned subsidiary.

Qualcomm, the largest maker of smartphone processors, was involved in a contentious takeover saga more than six years ago, when Broadcom Inc. attempted to acquire the company. Broadcom walked away from the bid after President Donald Trump blocked the deal, citing national security risks.

(Updates with more on potential deal in fourth paragraph.)