In yet another sign that the electronics industry is returning to better economic times, Intel Corp this morning upped its Q3 revenue and gross margin expectations on "stronger than expected demand for microprocessors and chipsets."
The MPU kingpin now expects revenue for the September quarter to be $9 billion, plus or minus $200 million, as compared to the previous range of $8.5 billion, plus or minus $400 million. The better outlook bests Wall Street expectations calling for Intel Q3 revenue at a maximum of $8.55 billion.
In July, Intel reported Q2 revenue at $8 billion, then exceeding Wall Street estimates and showing sequential growth of $879 million. The quarter-over-quarter growth marked Intel's strongest Q1-to-Q2 sales increase since 1988.
Intel also said this morning that its Q3 gross margin percentage is expected to be in the upper half of the previous range of 53%, plus or minus two percentage points. All other expectations for Intel's current quarter remain unchanged.
News of the guidance revision set Intel's stock, INTC, up in early morning trading. As of 10:27 am eastern, INTC was trading at $20.34, up 4.47% from its Thursday close of $19.47. INTC's 52-week high is $23.71.
Intel's improved outlook is one of several recent signals that the electronics industry's economic situation is improving. Gartner on Wednesday reported that the semiconductor market preformed better than expected in Q2 when revenue increased 17% sequentially. On that, the market research company upped its 2009 revenue estimate, stating that the positive Q2 sequential revenue growth bodes well for the PC market, in which Intel plays heavily.
PC OEM Dell also issued a positive report on Thursday, recording improved sequential financial results for its fiscal Q2 2010. The company noted that shipments were up and that it expects seasonal demand improvements from the consumer and US federal government businesses in the current quarter. Dell also said it believes a PC refresh cycle in commercial accounts is likely to occur in 2010, with IT spending improving first in the US.
Intel is scheduled to report its Q3 financial results on October 13.
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