Intel reported Q3 2026 results after the US market closed on October 29: revenue rose 21% to $16.5 billion and adjusted EPS of $0.52 beat the $0.40 estimate. But Q4 revenue guidance of $15 billion to Intel reported Q3 2026 results after the US market closed on October 29: revenue rose 21% to $16.5 billion and adjusted EPS of $0.52 beat the $0.40 estimate. But Q4 revenue guidance of $15 billion to
Why Did Intel (INTC) Stock Fall After Q3 2026 Earnings? Q4 Guidance Came In 9% Below Estimates
Intel reported Q3 2026 results after the US market closed on October 29: revenue rose 21% to $16.5 billion and adjusted EPS of $0.52 beat the $0.40 estimate. But Q4 revenue guidance of $15 billion to $16 billion was about 9% below forecasts, and the stock fell 21% after hours. Intel said it could not make enough data center chips to meet demand, PC sales are shrinking, and an October incident at its Kiryat Gat factory in Israel will cut revenue by about $600 million over two quarters.
What did Intel report for Q3 2026?
According to the Intel Q3 2026 release, for the quarter that ended September 26, 2026:
- Revenue: $16.5 billion, up 21% from a year earlier
- Data Center and AI (DCAI): $7.3 billion, up 78%, with operating income of $3.0 billion
- Client Computing (CCPG): $8.1 billion, down 5%, with operating income of $2.3 billion
- Intel Foundry: $6.7 billion, up 58%, with an operating loss of $1.9 billion
- Gross margin: 44.1% on a non-GAAP basis, up 4.1 percentage points
- EPS: $0.52 on a non-GAAP basis, up 126%, and $0.60 on a GAAP basis
- Cash flow: $5.1 billion from operations and $1.6 billion of adjusted free cash flow, with gross capex of $4.2 billion
The CFO said DCAI posted its strongest growth in 15 years, according to Yahoo Finance.
Did Intel beat earnings estimates?
On the quarter, yes. Adjusted EPS of $0.52 beat the $0.40 estimate, and revenue of $16.51 billion was in line with the $16.50 billion forecast, according to Reuters.
The miss was in PCs. Client chip sales of $8.10 billion fell short of the $8.98 billion estimate by about 10%. CEO Lip-Bu Tan said he was disappointed that Intel could not meet strong customer demand in the quarter.
Why did Intel stock fall after earnings?
Intel shares fell 21% after hours, which would erase more than $80 billion of market value if the drop holds in Friday's session, Reuters reported. The stock had more than doubled this year before the report. Four things drove the sell-off:
- Q4 guidance: revenue of $15.0 billion to $16.0 billion, against the $17.07 billion LSEG estimate, and adjusted EPS of $0.25, against $0.43
- Gross margin: guided to 38.0% on a non-GAAP basis in Q4, down from 44.1% in Q3
- PCs: Intel expects client revenue to fall more than 20% from Q3 as PC makers cut inventory, and CFO David Zinsner said the PC slowdown will last at least through the first half of 2027
- Supply: Intel cannot make enough server CPUs. Zinsner said demand for DCAI products continues to meaningfully exceed available supply
Higher memory prices are part of the PC problem. Tan said on the earnings call that PC prices have risen significantly this year, and Zinsner said Intel is not optimistic about memory costs next year. Memory makers are seeing the other side of this: SK hynix, Samsung and SanDisk all reported record results this week as prices climbed. Read our SK hynix Q3 2026 earnings article for one example.
What happened at Intel's Israel factory?
An explosion in October at Intel's Kiryat Gat fab in Israel killed two people and seriously injured one, according to local media cited by Reuters. The fab mainly makes 10nm data center chips. On the call, Zinsner said:
- Shutdown: the fab was closed for about two weeks, with production restarting by the end of this week
- Q4 impact: about $300 million of revenue and about 2 percentage points of gross margin, already in the guidance
- Q1 2027 impact: a similar revenue hit, with most scrapped wafers written off in Q4
The incident explains about $300 million of the gap between Intel's guidance and estimates. The rest comes from PCs and supply limits.
What is Intel's Q4 2026 guidance?
- Revenue: $15.0 billion to $16.0 billion
- Gross margin: 38.0% non-GAAP and 37.1% GAAP
- EPS: $0.25 non-GAAP and $0.10 GAAP
- DCAI: revenue expected to grow in the mid-teens percent from Q3
- Capex: $20 billion for 2026, with 2027 spending to rise strongly
Zinsner said Intel probably will not have positive free cash flow next year, as it adds capacity. Intel raised $23 billion in a share offering in August.
How did INTCSTOCK_USDT trade on MEXC?
MEXC's Intel perpetual futures contract, INTCSTOCK_USDT (1 contract = 0.01 INTC), trades 24/7, so it priced the results while Nasdaq was closed. The contract stood at 92.17 USDT at the 4:00 p.m. ET close. In the first hour after the release, it dropped as low as 71.45 USDT, down 22.5%, and ended the hour at 76.70 USDT, down 16.8%. Volume in that hour was about 12 times the hour before.
The contract did not recover from that drop. It kept falling during the call, and at 9:25 p.m. ET (9:25 a.m. Beijing time on October 30), it was at 70.58 USDT, down 23.4% from the close (MEXC).
Prices on a 24/7 contract can move sharply when the US market is closed, because fewer orders are on the book. You can trade the move on the INTCSTOCK_USDT futures page, and our guide on how to trade stock futures on MEXC covers margin and liquidation.
What did Intel say about 18A and its foundry business?
- 18A: yields reached industry-standard levels, ahead of Intel's internal plans, and 18A costs have fallen about 40% since Q1, Zinsner said
- Foundry customers: Tan said Intel is working with a couple of highly strategic customers on 18A-P but will not disclose names. He expects advanced-packaging customer announcements within about two quarters
- 14A: the 0.9 process design kit went to select customers in October, with version 1.0 due in Q1 2027
Our Intel Q3 2026 earnings preview looked at how much of DCAI's profit the foundry loss absorbs. This quarter, DCAI earned $3.0 billion and the foundry lost $1.9 billion.
What does Intel's result mean for AMD?
Chip stocks fell in extended trading after Intel's report: NVIDIA, Broadcom, AMD, Micron, Qualcomm and Arm dropped between 1% and 6%, according to Reuters. AMD reports Q3 results after the close on November 3. Intel's comments on strong server CPU demand and a shrinking PC market cover both of AMD's main businesses. Read our AMD Q3 2026 earnings preview.
FAQ
When did Intel report Q3 2026 earnings?
Intel reported Q3 2026 results after the US market close on Thursday, October 29, 2026.
Did Intel beat Q3 2026 earnings expectations?
Yes on profit. Adjusted EPS of $0.52 beat the $0.40 estimate, and revenue of $16.51 billion matched the $16.50 billion forecast. Client chip sales of $8.10 billion missed the $8.98 billion estimate.
Why did Intel stock drop after Q3 2026 earnings?
Intel fell 21% after hours because Q4 revenue guidance of $15 billion to $16 billion was about 9% below the $17.07 billion estimate, Q4 gross margin is guided down to 38%, PC sales are falling and Intel cannot make enough server chips to meet demand.
What is Intel's Q4 2026 guidance?
Intel expects Q4 2026 revenue of $15.0 billion to $16.0 billion, a non-GAAP gross margin of 38.0% and non-GAAP EPS of $0.25. The guidance includes about $300 million of lost revenue from the Kiryat Gat fab incident.
How much did Intel's data center business grow?
Intel's Data Center and AI segment grew 78% to $7.3 billion in Q3 2026, and Intel expects mid-teens sequential growth in Q4, limited by supply.
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The articles shared on this page are sourced from public platforms and are provided for reference only. They do not represent the position or views of MEXC. All rights belong to James Mitchell. If you believe any content infringes upon the rights of a third party, please contact [email protected] for prompt removal. MEXC does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of any content and is not responsible for any actions taken based on the information provided. The content does not constitute financial, legal, or other professional advice, nor should it be interpreted as a recommendation or endorsement by MEXC. For expert insights and in-depth analysis, visit MEXC Learn.
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