Shares of Intel Corp. plunged more than 18 percent Friday, a day after the company cut its second-quarter revenue forecast. The world's largest semiconductor maker announced it expects sales for quarter ending June 29 to be between $6.2 billion and $6.5 billion, down from its estimate of $6.4 billion to $7 billion unveiled in April.
On Thursday, Intel blamed the lower-than-expected sales on soft demand for PC processors in Europe.
"In my mind, we got a little aggressive in our forecasts," said Andy Bryant, Intel's chief financial officer.
Intel shares closed down $5, to $22, in Friday trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market.
Analysts were expecting second-quarter sales of $6.7 billion and net earnings of 15 cents a share, according to Thomson Financial/First Call. Last year, the company recorded sales of $6.3 billion and profits of 12 cents for the period.
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