Intel Shares Plunge 20% After Weak Q4 Guidance Blames Slowing PC Market

Intel (INTC) shares fell 20% after the chipmaker issued fourth-quarter guidance well below analyst estimates, citing a persistent downturn in the global PC market. The company forecast Q4 revenue of $15 billion to $16 billion and adjusted EPS of 25 cents, versus LSEG consensus of $17.1 billion and 43 cents. Third-quarter revenue rose 21% year-over-year to $16.51 billion, edging past the $16.5 billion estimate, with adjusted EPS of 52 cents beating 40 cents. But Client Computing and Physical AI revenue fell 5% to $8.1 billion, offsetting a 78% surge in data center and AI revenue to $7.3 billion. Counterpoint Research said global PC shipments fell 4% in the second quarter on rising memory and component costs. CFO David Zinsner said the PC slowdown should persist at least through the first half of next year. Guidance also reflects an explosion at an Israeli fab this month that killed two workers and is expected to cost about $600 million in revenue over two quarters. Intel shares are up roughly 150% year to date but have fallen about 23% since October on doubts over AI infrastructure spending.