Intel Beats Up on Analysts Yet Again

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

Intel (NAS: INTC) reported earnings on Jan. 19. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Dec. 31 (Q4), Intel beat slightly on revenue and beat expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue increased significantly, and earnings per share expanded.

Margins shrank across the board.

Revenue details
Intel reported revenue of $13.9 billion. The 40 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ anticipated sales of $13.7 billion. Sales were 21% higher than the prior-year quarter's $11.5 billion.

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Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions.

EPS details
Non-GAAP EPS came in at $0.68. The 16 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ predicted $0.64 per share on the same basis. GAAP EPS of $0.64 for Q4 were 14% higher than the prior-year quarter's $0.56 per share.

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Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Figures may be non-GAAP to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
For the quarter, gross margin was 64.5%, 10 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 33.1%, 200 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 24.2%, 360 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $12.8 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.51.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $55.0 billion. The average EPS estimate is $2.43.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a five-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 8,582 members out of 9,161 rating the stock outperform, and 581 members rating it underperform. Among 2,113 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 2,027 give Intel a green thumbs-up, and 86 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Intel is outperform, with an average price target of $26.23.

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At the time thisarticle was published Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor ofMotley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. The Motley Fool owns shares of Intel. Motley Fool newsletter services have recommended buying shares of Intel. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy

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