What happened
Intel (INTC -0.80%) is apparently having a solid quarter, and investors are happy about this. After the chip incumbent's leader made encouraging remarks about its current fundamentals, its stock closed Thursday nearly 2% higher. That was a notably better performance than that of the S&P 500 index, which slipped by almost 0.2% on the day.
So what
In an industry conference Thursday, Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger waxed optimistic about the company's current (third) quarter. Speaking about the guidance it offered for the period, the executive said, "Taking all of those things together at this point, we say we're above the midpoint of our guide for Q3. So we're feeling good about Q3 as that progresses."
That pronouncement came only a few days after the latest bullish development with Intel. On Wednesday, the company announced it would roll out a new data center chip, the Sierra Forest, that is far more efficient in terms of power use than its present offerings. This is sure to be a compelling new product for data center operators looking to save costs and/or make their operations "greener."
If Intel ends up doing well against its guidance for the third quarter, it wouldn't be the first instance in recent times. The tech giant's second-quarter results landed on the high side of its guidance range, one of the numerous positive developments for the company during the period.
Now what
Intel hasn't yet set a date for its third-quarter earnings release; given its current pattern, this is likely to occur in late October. On average, analysts tracking the stock are anticipating nearly $13.5 billion in revenue, down from almost $15.3 in the third quarter of 2022. Per-share earnings should come in at $0.21; the year-ago result was $0.59.
