Key Highlights

● Intel closed Thursday's regular session at $92.07 before plunging in extended trading.

● Third-quarter Revenue reached $16.51 billion and adjusted Earnings of $0.52 a share beat estimates.

● Fourth-quarter revenue guidance of $15.0 billion to $16.0 billion trailed the roughly $17 billion expected.

● Intel expects a PC slowdown through at least the first half of next year.

Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) slipped during Thursday's regular session to close at $92.07, then plunged in extended trading after a fourth-quarter forecast that fell far below Wall Street's expectations overshadowed a strong third quarter.

Two sessions, two very different moves

For most of Thursday, October 29, Intel was simply one more chip stock caught in a tech selloff. Then it reported.

The stock closed the regular session at $92.07, down modestly, according to market data, as the PHLX Semiconductor index ended a four-day winning streak. After the closing bell, the stock plunged in extended trading.

Reports differed on how far it fell, because after-hours prices shifted through the evening. One report put the stock at $77.96 at one point, while another showed it near $71.63. Other reports described a steep after-hours decline, with one noting the stock pared some losses.

The quarter was good

Intel's third quarter was strong by most measures. Revenue reached $16.51 billion, up sharply from a year earlier, and adjusted earnings of $0.52 a share topped the $0.40 consensus, according to market data. Revenue from its Data Center and AI group surged to $7.32 billion, a sign that Demand for server chips tied to the artificial-intelligence buildout remained healthy through the quarter.

The forecast was not

The problem was the outlook. Intel guided fourth-quarter revenue to $15.0 billion to $16.0 billion, below the roughly $17 billion analysts had expected. It projected adjusted earnings of $0.25 a share, well under the $0.43 consensus, according to market data.

The company also said it expects a PC slowdown to last through at least the first half of next year, a caution that weighed on views of its consumer chip business.

The gap between a strong quarter and a weak forecast is a familiar trap. Investors price stocks on what comes next, and Intel's guidance implied a sharp sequential step down.

Part of a heavy evening

Intel's slide came alongside Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN)'s after-hours drop on a softer-than-expected fourth-quarter sales outlook. Together, the two weighed on futures. Nasdaq-100 futures fell after the bell, and S&P 500 futures also dropped, while Dow futures edged up, according to market data.

Reddit (NYSE:RDDT), Roblox (NYSE:RBLX) and Twilio (NYSE:TWLO) each tumbled in extended trading as well, despite topping some estimates.

A tough day already

The regular session had set a nervous tone. The Nasdaq Composite tumbled 365.13 points to 26,184.72 as Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) suffered its worst day since its 2004 IPO, erasing about $500 billion in market value. The S&P 500 slipped 23.59 points to 7,720.39.

Semiconductor stocks were broadly weaker. Marvell Technology (NASDAQ:MRVL) sank after media reports said it is in advanced talks to acquire Lumentum (NASDAQ:LITE), Micron (NASDAQ:MU) slid as memory stocks cooled, and AMD (NASDAQ:AMD) fell with the group.

One market analyst said "markets are no longer rewarding companies simply for investing heavily in AI."

Yet the broader market was resilient. The Russell 2000 climbed 28.71 points to 2,859.22, and more than 400 S&P 500 members rose.

What to watch

The first test is Friday's open, when Intel's after-hours price meets the full weight of regular trading. Moves in extended trading can deepen or shrink once Volume returns.

Beyond that, investors will look for detail on the PC slowdown and how long it may last, and for evidence that the data center Business can keep growing quickly enough to offset it. Any update on gross margins and costs will also be closely watched. More broadly, Intel's guidance adds to questions about chip demand heading into 2027.