Intel Revenues Grew 10 Percent in Q4 Amid PC Sales Rebound

2023 was a financial bloodbath for Intel, but the microprocessor giant finally saw a rebound in the fourth quarter, when revenues grew 10 percent year-over-year (YOY). Unfortunately, its outlook for the current quarter came in well under expectations, undermining the good news and sending Intel’s stock price tumbling.

Intel reported that it earned a net income of $2.7 billion on revenues of $15.4 billion in the quarter ending December 31, 2023, a gain of 10 percent YOY. Unfortunately, this was the only quarter in which Intel revenues grew in 2023, and so its full year didn’t look as positive, with a net income of $1.7 billion, down 79 percent YOY, on revenues of $54.2 billion, down 14 percent.

“We delivered strong Q4 results, surpassing expectations for the fourth consecutive quarter with revenue at the higher end of our guidance,” Intel Pat Gelsinger said. “The quarter capped a year of tremendous progress on Intel’s transformation, where we consistently drove execution and accelerated innovation, resulting in strong customer momentum for our products. In 2024, we remain relentlessly focused on achieving process and product leadership, continuing to build our external foundry business and at-scale global manufacturing, and executing our mission to bring AI everywhere as we drive long-term value for stakeholders.”

Intel’s Client Computing Group, which is responsible for PC chipset sales, delivered $8.8 billion in revenues, a gain of 33 percent YOY, and it’s first and only gain of the year. The Data Center and AI business provided another $4 billion (down 10 percent YOY), while Network and Edge hit $1.5 billion (down 24 percent). Intel’s smallest businesses, MobileEye and Intel Foundry Services, brought in $637 million and $291 million, respectively.

Oddly, Intel didn’t have anything to say about PC sales, beyond noting that it had “ushered in the age of the AI PC” in the quarter with the release of its first Core Ultra processors. But about 59 percent of Intel’s revenues from PC sales came from portable PCs, with 36 percent from desktop PCs and 5 percent from “other.”

Looking to the current quarter, Intel said that it expected revenues in the $12.2 billion to $13.2 billion range, well below expectations. Intel shares fell 6 percent in after-hours trading as a result.