Is the long-awaited IT buying cycle upon us? Analysts have been saying for some time that they expect an uptick in buying thanks to a growing interest in Windows 7 and the need to refresh desktops, notebooks and servers that companies have stuck with in the face of the faltering economy.
Chip giant Intel is very much a bellwether of where hardware sales are headed and, based on its just-released earnings report, the outlook is positive. Hardware Central reports on Intel’s latest earnings results highlighted by an especially strong performance by the chip company’s Data Center Group.
The second quarter of the year is typically the slowest for the semiconductor makers, but don
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t tell Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) that. The chip giant reported the single best quarter in its history, led by server sales which had been lagging for several quarters.
Intel reported second-quarter revenue of $10.8 billion, up 34 percent year-over-year, with net income of $2.9 billion, up 175 percent year-over-year, and earnings per share of 51 cents. That was well ahead of Thomson Reuters analyst estimates of $10.25 billion and EPS estimates of $0.43.