Intel Introduces XEON 600 Processors: Will it Boost Prospects?

Intel Corporation INTC introduced its next-generation workstation CPUs, the Xeon 600 series. The leading-edge processor is purpose-built for professional environments where extreme computation requirements are present, and systems run heavy workloads for long durations. Unlike consumer CPUs, such as i7 or i9, in these cases, stability, scalability and high computing power matter the most.

The processor includes 86 performance cores, enabling 9% better single-thread performance and upto 61% higher multi-threaded performance. This ensures faster processing of heavy workloads, such as AI model training, large-scale data processing, engineering simulations and more. Intel has added FP16 data type support to its Advanced Matrix Extensions (AMX) engine. This is set to ensure up to 17% performance improvement in AI/ML workloads compared to the prior generation.

The system also incorporates up to 128 CPU PCIe Gen 5.0 lanes. This will provide robust platform connectivity and effectively support multi-GPUs, SSDs and network cards. Integrated Intel Wi-Fi 6E and discrete support for Intel Wi-Fi 7 ensure consistent connectivity. The processor also brings solid improvement in memory performance compared to the prior generation.

The product launch has strengthened Intel’s position in the high-end workstation and professional AI compute market. Per a report from Future Market Insights, the global workstation market is expected to witness a 7.4% compound annual growth rate from 2025 to 2035. Intel is expanding its portfolio capitalize on this emerging market trend. ASUS, a leading computer, mobile and electronics manufacturer, is already using Intel’s Xeon 698X Processor in its latest motherboard, delivering impressive performance.

How are Competitors Faring?

Intel faces competition from Advanced Micro Devices AMD and Arm Holdings ARM in this space. Arm-based processors are gaining traction in data centers, cloud workloads and AI computing. Hyperscalers, such as Amazon, have deployed Arm Holdings’ architecture in the AWS Graviton processors. ARM’s Neoverse V3 is built for high-performance computing and the most demanding AI workloads. Despite growing overlap with workstation desktop use cases, Arm-based processors are not yet a full replacement for XEON processors.
 
AMD’s Ryzen Threadripper PRO Series is the leading-edge workstation processors designed for creators, AI developers, architects and engineers. High core counts, large memory capacity, support for high-end GPUs and advanced configurations make the AMD Threadripper a top-tier option for enterprises.

INTC’s Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates

Shares of Intel have surged 152.2% over the past year compared with the industry’s growth of 60.7%.

Going by the price/book ratio, the company's shares currently trade at 1.93 book value, lower than 28.45 of the industry average.

Earnings estimates for INTC for 2025 and 2026 have declined over the past 60 days.

Intel stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). 

You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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