Intel third quarter results solid; ups fourth quarter revenue target

Intel reported third quarter net income of $1.9 billion, or 31 cents a share, on revenue of $10.1 billion. Intel also upped its sales projection for the fourth quarter to $10.5 billion to $11.1 billion. The fourth quarter is seasonally strong.

Wall Street was expecting earnings of 30 cents a share on sales of $9.6 billion, according to Thomson Financial. For the fourth quarter, Intel was expected to report 37 cents a share on sales of $10.4 billion.

Intel said Tuesday that its third quarter revenue was up 15 percent from a year ago with net income up 43 percent. In a statement, Intel CEO Paul Otellini said "we are very pleased with the results and optimistic about our business."

By the numbers:

• Intel said its mobile and enterprise group processors saw revenue jump 14 percent with chipsets and other products up 19 percent.
• Average selling prices were flat, but motherboard units were lower.
• Gross margin was 52.4 percent, up from 46.98 percent in the second quarter. Intel was able to boost margins due to higher volume and lower manufacturing costs. Intel added that it sees gross margins improving to about 57 percent in the fourth quarter.
• Fourth quarter R&D spending will be between $2.8 billion and $3 billion. For the year, R&D spending will be about $5.8 billion.
• Intel shipped 2 million quad core processors in the third quarter.
• Revenue in the Asia-Pacific was $5.2 billion followed by the Americas ($2.06 billion), Europe ($1.82 billion) and Japan ($994 million).