Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) released its earnings report for the second quarter of 2013 on Wednesday July 17th after the ring of the closing bell. The company showed earnings of $0.39 per share for the three month period on revenue of $12.8 billion. On today’s market, shares in the microprocessor manufacturer trended slightly down, finishing the day at $24.17.
In the run up to the release of this earnings report analysts were looking for earnings per share of 40 cents from Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC). consensus revenue estimates came in at $12.9 billion. In the same three months of last year Intel earned 57 cents per share on revenues totaling $13.5 billion.
Intel Secular decline
Intel Corporation (NYSE:INTC) essentially operates in a dying business. Despite the company’s ever improving technology, it is selling a product that sees demand fall every single year. The laptop and desktop market are likely to exist for years to come, but not in the for that Intel has lived on in the last decade.
Haswell chips were a massive improvement and they have failed to precipitate an increase in demand. The PC processor market is one Intel needs an escape from.
Mobile computing is on the rise, and it’s not about to turn around. Intel has been trying to break into the mobile market for years. It may be getting somewhere with its latest range of chips, but it will take a long time, and the path is fraught with risk. One of Intel’s best businesses right now is on the other end of mobile, the ultra stationary.
Mobile infrastructure
To run many services on tablets and smart phones a huge amount of infrastructure is usually needed. Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) has experience in server architecture and demand for that experience is growing. The margins aren’t the same as they are in the consumer market, but Intel may need its server business to get over the loss of the PC market.
Investors aren’t sure how Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) is handling the quicker than expected disappearance of the PC market. The company’s stock has increased in line with the S&P 500 (INDEXSP:.INX) since the start of the year. Few investors are allowing hope or despair to intrude on decisions relating to Intel.
Intel did not break the mobile market in 2013. Perhaps 2014 is the year of the smart phone for Intel, but that promise hasn’t worked out thus far however.
