Intel shares jump 7% on strong earnings and revenue forecasts

Intel gave bullish quarterly and full-year revenue forecasts, suggesting personal computer demand remains strong and purchasing by data centre owners has come surging back.

The shares jumped as much as 7.2 per cent in late trading. Revenue in the current period will be roughly $19 billion (€17 billion), and profit will be about $1.23 (€1.11) a share, excluding certain items.

That compares with average estimates by analysts of $17.2 billion and $1.04 a share.

Sales in 2020 will be about $73.5 billion, the company said late Thursday in a statement. Analysts were looking for $72.2 billion on average, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

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Fourth-quarter revenue also beat the highest Wall Street estimates. Results are being lifted by strong growth in data center chips and steady demand for personal computers.

Global fourth-quarter PC shipments rose 2.3 per cent from a year earlier as companies upgraded to a new version of Microsoft’s Windows operating system, according to research firm Gartner.

Intel still has more than 80 per cent of this market. It controls even more of the server chip market, which has seen a recovery in demand from owners of large data centres.

The largest US chipmaker has lost its lead in production technology, sparking concern on Wall Street about sales growth and future profit.

However, executives have said that Intel is targeting a broader range of markets and the company has plenty of room to expand in new areas, such as networking and the auto industry.

Fourth quarter sales were up 8 per cent to $20.2 billion, the California-based company said.

Analysts on average had predicted $19.2 billion. Net income was $6.9 billion, or $1.58 a share, compared with estimates for $1.23 a share.

Gross margin, or the percentage of sales remaining after deducting the cost of production, was 58.8 per cent in the quarter. – Bloomberg