Intel Reports Best Quarter Ever (Q2 2010 earnings)

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Intel Corporation today reported second-quarter revenue of $10.8 billion, up 34 percent year-over-year. The company reported operating income of $4.0 billion, net income of $2.9 billion and EPS of 51 cents.

"Strong demand from corporate customers for our most advanced microprocessors helped Intel achieve the best quarter in the company's 42-year history," said Paul Otellini, Intel president and CEO. "Our process technology lead plus compelling architectural designs increasingly differentiate Intel-based products in the marketplace. The PC and server segments are healthy and the demand for leading-edge technology will continue to increase for the foreseeable future."

Q2 2010 Highlights

• PC Client Group revenue was up 2 percent sequentially, with record mobile microprocessor revenue.
• Data Center Group revenue was up 13 percent sequentially, with record server microprocessor revenue.
• Intel® Atom^TM microprocessor and chipset revenue of $413 million, up 16 percent sequentially.
• The average selling price (ASP) for microprocessors was slightly up sequentially.
• Gross margin was 67 percent, 3 percentage points higher than the midpoint of the company's expected range of 62 to 66 percent.
• R&D plus MG&A spending was $3.25 billion, higher than the company's prior expectation of approximately $3.1 billion.
• The net gain from equity investments and interest and other was $204 million, higher than the company's revised expectation of $180 million.
• The effective tax rate was 31 percent, slightly below the company's revised expectation of approximately 32 percent.

Business Outlook

The Outlook for the third quarter does not include the effect of any other acquisitions, divestitures or similar transactions that may be completed after July 12.

Q3 2010

• Revenue: $11.6 billion, plus or minus $400 million.
• Gross margin: 67 percent, plus or minus a couple percentage points.
• R&D plus MG&A spending: Approximately $3.2 billion.
• Impact of equity investments and interest and other: approximately zero.
• Depreciation: Approximately $1.1 billion.

Full-Year 2010

• Gross margin: 66 percent, plus or minus a couple percentage points. The company's prior expectation was 64 percent, plus or minus a couple percentage points.
• Spending (R&D plus MG&A): $12.7 billion, plus or minus $100 million. The company's prior expectation was $12.4 billion, plus or minus $100 million.
• R&D spending: Approximately $6.6 billion. The company's prior expectation was approximately $6.4 billion.
• Tax rate: Approximately 32 percent for the third and fourth quarters, higher than the company's prior expectation of 31 percent.
• Depreciation: Approximately $4.4 billion, plus or minus $100 million.
• Capital spending: $5.2 billion, plus or minus $200 million. The company's prior expectation was $4.8 billion, plus or minus $100 million.

Status of Business Outlook

During the quarter, Intel's corporate representatives may reiterate the Business Outlook during private meetings with investors, investment analysts, the media and others. From the close of business on Aug. 27 until publication of the company's third-quarter earnings release, Intel will observe a "Quiet Period" during which the Business Outlook disclosed in the company's news releases and filings with the SEC should be considered as historical, speaking as of prior to the Quiet Period only and not subject to an update by the company.

Risk Factors

The above statements and any others in this document that refer to plans and expectations for the third quarter, the year and the future are forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Many factors could affect Intel's actual results, and variances from Intel's current expectations regarding such factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in these forward-looking statements. Intel presently considers the following to be the important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the corporation's expectations.

• Demand could be different from Intel's expectations due to factors including changes in business and economic conditions; customer acceptance of Intel's and competitors' products; changes in customer order patterns including order cancellations; and changes in the level of inventory at customers.
• Intel operates in intensely competitive industries that are characterized by a high percentage of costs that are fixed or difficult to reduce in the short term and product demand that is highly variable and difficult to forecast. Additionally, Intel is in the process of transitioning to its next generation of products on 32nm process technology, and there could be execution issues associated with these changes, including product defects and errata along with lower than anticipated manufacturing yields. Revenue and the gross margin percentage are affected by the timing of Intel product introductions and the demand for and market acceptance of Intel's products; actions taken by Intel's competitors, including product offerings and introductions, marketing programs and pricing pressures and Intel's response to such actions; defects or disruptions in the supply of materials or resources; and Intel's ability to respond quickly to technological developments and to incorporate new features into its products.
• The gross margin percentage could vary significantly from expectations based on changes in revenue levels; product mix and pricing; start-up costs; variations in inventory valuation, including variations related to the timing of qualifying products for sale; excess or obsolete inventory; manufacturing yields; changes in unit costs; impairments of long-lived assets, including manufacturing, assembly/test and intangible assets; the timing and execution of the manufacturing ramp and associated costs; and capacity utilization.
• Expenses, particularly certain marketing and compensation expenses, as well as restructuring and asset impairment charges, vary depending on the level of demand for Intel's products and the level of revenue and profits.
• The tax rate expectation is based on current tax law and current expected income. The tax rate may be affected by the jurisdictions in which profits are determined to be earned and taxed; changes in the estimates of credits, benefits and deductions; the resolution of issues arising from tax audits with various tax authorities, including payment of interest and penalties; and the ability to realize deferred tax assets.
• Gains or losses from equity securities and interest and other could vary from expectations depending on gains or losses on the sale, exchange, change in the fair value or impairments of debt and equity investments; interest rates; cash balances; and changes in fair value of derivative instruments.
• The majority of Intel's non-marketable equity investment portfolio balance is concentrated in companies in the flash memory market segment, and declines in this market segment or changes in management's plans with respect to Intel's investments in this market segment could result in significant impairment charges, impacting restructuring charges as well as gains/losses on equity investments and interest and other.
• Intel's results could be impacted by adverse economic, social, political and physical/infrastructure conditions in countries where Intel, its customers or its suppliers operate, including military conflict and other security risks, natural disasters, infrastructure disruptions, health concerns and fluctuations in currency exchange rates.
• Intel's results could be affected by the timing of closing of acquisitions and divestitures.
• Intel's results could be affected by adverse effects associated with product defects and errata (deviations from published specifications), and by litigation or regulatory matters involving intellectual property, stockholder, consumer, antitrust and other issues, such as the litigation and regulatory matters described in Intel's SEC reports. An unfavorable ruling could include monetary damages or an injunction prohibiting us from manufacturing or selling one or more products, precluding particular business practices, impacting Intel's ability to design its products, or requiring other remedies such as compulsory licensing of intellectual property.

A detailed discussion of these and other factors that could affect Intel's results is included in Intel's SEC filings, including the report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 27, 2010.

Earnings Webcast

Intel will hold a public webcast at 2:30 p.m. PDT today on its Investor Relations website at www.intc.com. A webcast replay and MP3 download will also be made available on the site.

Intel plans to report its earnings for the third quarter of 2010 on Tuesday, Oct. 12, 2010. Immediately following the earnings report, the company plans to publish a commentary by Stacy J. Smith, vice president and chief financial officer, at www.intc.com/results.cfm. A public webcast of Intel's earnings conference call will follow at 2:30 p.m. PDT at www.intc.com.

Intel (NASDAQ: INTC - News) is a world leader in computing innovation. The company designs and builds the essential technologies that serve as the foundation for the world's computing devices. Additional information about Intel is available at www.intel.com/pressroom and blogs.intel.com.

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