Sales of server chips saved Intel Corp.’s fourth quarter, as net income jumped 48 percent mainly on strong demand from corporations. Yet the sour economy and the rise of smaller and sleeker gadgets such as the iPad have hurt consumers’ appetite for new PCs, depressing that part of Intel’s business.
As the world’s No. 1 maker of computer processors, Intel has a pulse on consumer and corporate spending on technology.
Its numbers topped Wall Street’s forecasts, sending shares up 2 percent in extended trading Thursday and setting a strong tone for other technology companies set to report quarterly results.
IBM Corp., the biggest technology services provider and a seller of Intel-based servers, reports Tuesday. Intel’s smaller rival in computer processors, Advanced Micro Devices Inc., reports next Thursday. AMD unexpectedly ousted its CEO this week over the company’s prospects for growth.
Intel’s results come at a time of soul searching for the PC industry.
The PC market has ballooned to its biggest size ever, with more than 1 million PCs being sold every day — a stat frequently cited by Intel CEO Paul Otellini. But the industry is in crisis as smart phones and tablets compete for consumer dollars, forcing old-guard companies such as Intel to shift gears.
Although Intel’s results were strong compared with the previous year, revenue in each of its major divisions, except for server chips, was flat from the third quarter.
That showed the strain that emerged toward the end of the year, from economic problems such as prolonged unemployment and the European debt crisis, and competition from Apple Inc.’s iPad.
Intel’s chief financial officer, Stacy Smith, said in an interview that the extent of sluggish consumer demand was in line with what the company was predicting.
Strong corporate spending was expected, as well: Companies, many of which froze their technology budgets during the Great Recession,…