1. MaxLinear, Inc. (NASDAQ:MXL)
With a 197.01% gain so far in April, MaxLinear, Inc. (NASDAQ:MXL) has secured a spot on our list of the mid-cap stocks with the highest gains in April.
On April 24, 2026, MaxLinear, Inc. (NASDAQ:MXL) published its first quarter 2026 financial results, featuring revenue of $137.2 million (+1% QoQ). Reacting to the results, Stifel raised its price targets to $49 from $34 while reaffirming its “Buy” rating.
As evident from the results, data center optical interconnects are quickly becoming MaxLinear’s most powerful growth engine.
Analysts drew confidence from MaxLinear, Inc. (NASDAQ:MXL)’s strong results, which were driven by accelerating data center demand.
MaxLinear, Inc. (NASDAQ:MXL) revised its 2026 optical data center sales target to $150 million to $170 million from a prior range of $110 million to $130 million. That optimism reflects Keystone platform ramps across major U.S. and Asian customers, 1.6T platform sampling in anticipation of late-2026 production readiness, and an expected recovery in the Broadband segment.
More importantly, management’s projection for the June-quarter revenue of $165.0 million stole the spotlight, as it came 20.3% above the prior quarter and surpassed Stifel’s estimate by 18.7%, defying the historical seasonal softness of negative 2.4%.
Following the results, Needham also upgraded its rating on MaxLinear, Inc. (NASDAQ:MXL) to “Buy” from “Hold” on April 24, while reiterating a $60 price target. The firm anticipates that this business mix shift, combined with improving cash flow generation, will drive further share price appreciation, notwithstanding the ongoing Silicon Motion arbitration risk.
MaxLinear Inc. (NASDAQ:MXL) provides communications systems-on-chip solutions in the US, Asia, Europe, and internationally. It serves electronics distributors, module makers, OEMs, and original design manufacturers.
While we acknowledge the potential of MXL to grow, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than MXL and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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