Shares of Intel plunged roughly 25 percent in premarket trading Friday after the American semiconductor giant issued a sharply disappointing sales and earnings forecast, raising fresh doubts about its turnaround and warning that a severe slump in the personal computer market could persist well into next year.
\n\nThe California-based chipmaker said Thursday that it expects fourth-quarter revenue of between $15 billion and $16 billion, substantially below the $17 billion Wall Street analysts had anticipated.
\n\nIntel also forecast adjusted earnings of just 25 cents per share, compared with analysts’ expectations of 43 cents. The company’s projected gross profit margin of 38 percent was down sharply from the 43 percent reported for the third quarter.
\n\nThe unexpectedly bleak outlook sent Intel shares tumbling more than 25 percent before Friday’s opening bell, threatening to wipe out more than $120 billion in market value. The selloff was particularly dramatic because Intel shares had more than doubled this year as investors bet on a revival of the company’s fortunes amid the artificial intelligence boom.
\n\nThe disappointing forecast came despite surprisingly strong third-quarter results. Intel reported revenue of $16.5 billion, up 21 percent from a year earlier, and adjusted earnings of 52 cents per share, exceeding…
Original source: https://www.breitbart.com/tech/
