Business

Intel shares climb on bullish on outlook for second quarter

Chip demand seen recovering after a chip glut and post-pandemic slump in demand for PCs

Intel's Sapphire Rapids microprocessor at the company's headquarters in Santa Clara, California. Photograph: Anastasiia Sapon/The New York Times

Thu Apr 27 2023 - 21:24

Chipmaker Intel forecast second-quarter revenue above Wall Street estimates on Thursday, a sign that chip demand was recovering after a downturn wrought by excess supply and a post-pandemic slump in the personal computer market.

Shares of the company rose 2 per cent in extended trading, having gained more than 10 per cent so far this year following a tough 2022.

A fall of about 30 per cent in first-quarter global PC shipments has made some chip industry experts hopeful that a build-up of inventory has cleared out, paving the way for fresh orders.

The company forecast second-quarter adjusted revenue in the range of about $11.5 billion and $12.5 billion (€10.5 billion-€11.4 billion). Analysts polled by Refinitiv were expecting revenue of $11.75 billion.

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Intel has also ramped up shipments of its most powerful data centre chip, Sapphire Rapids, whose more than one-year delay had allowed rival Advanced Micro Devices and ARM-based server CPU makers to take market share from the company.

Still, Intel has a commanding share of the markets for PC and server processing chips and the company has planned to spend billions of dollars to build out new manufacturing hubs and improve the design and performance of its products.

Revenue from its data centre and AI group fell 39 per cent to $3.7 billion. Client computing group revenue, which includes PCs, fell 38 per cent to $5.8 billion.

Intel’s aggressive push has, however, come at a cost. The company in February slashed its dividend payout to the lowest in 16 years as it saves cash for investments meant to help it catch up with the likes of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Ltd on manufacturing technology and facilities the growth of its foundry business.

Revenue in the first quarter was $11.72 billion, compared to estimates of $11.04 billion.

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