Intel reported its fourth-quarter 2020 results after the market closed on Thursday 21 January 2021, a week after naming Pat Gelsinger as its next CEO. Going in, Intel had already said it would beat its October guidance of $17.4 billion revenue and $1.10 non-GAAP earnings per share. It did: revenue came in at $20.0 billion and non-GAAP EPS at $1.52. This post was first written on 20 January 2021 as a preview and updated after the results.
Against the backdrop of Intel's (NASDAQ:INTC) newly announced CEO, the company was scheduled to announce Q4 earnings on 21 January, after market close.
Key takeaways
- Intel named Pat Gelsinger as CEO on 13 January 2021, effective 15 February 2021, replacing Bob Swan.
- In the same announcement Intel said it expected to exceed its Q4 2020 guidance of $17.4 billion revenue and $1.10 non-GAAP EPS.
- Actual Q4 2020 revenue was $20.0 billion and non-GAAP EPS $1.52. Full-year 2020 revenue was a record $77.9 billion.
- The quarter was helped by strong PC demand during the work-from-home wave.
- Investors were also waiting for an update on Intel's delayed 7nm process.
The preview: what was expected
Over the previous two years, Intel had beaten EPS estimates in every quarter and revenue estimates in about 88% of quarters, according to the analyst consensus data widely quoted before the call.
The company's fourth-quarter performance was expected to have benefited from strength in its client computing business, thanks to growing PC demand during the coronavirus work-from-home wave. Analysts said key questions about Intel's long-term strategy, above all whether it would keep making its leading chips in its own fabs, were unlikely to be answered until the new CEO took over the following month.
Intel appoints a new CEO: Pat Gelsinger
On 13 January 2021 Intel appointed Pat Gelsinger as its new CEO. Gelsinger had spent about 30 years at Intel, including as its first chief technology officer, before leaving in 2009. He went on to EMC and then served as CEO of VMware from 2012. Bob Swan stayed on as CEO until 15 February 2021.
In the same announcement about Swan's departure, Intel said it expected to exceed its fourth-quarter 2020 guidance, which had predicted revenue of $17.4 billion and non-GAAP EPS of $1.10. It also promised an update on 21 January on its progress with 7nm. Delays to that process had weighed on Intel's competitive position, as rivals using TSMC's 7nm and smaller processes moved ahead.
Update: the Q4 2020 results
| Measure | October guidance | Reported (21 Jan 2021) |
|---|---|---|
| Q4 2020 revenue | $17.4 billion | $20.0 billion, down 1% year on year |
| Q4 2020 non-GAAP EPS | $1.10 | $1.52 |
| Q4 2020 GAAP EPS | Not applicable | $1.42 |
| Full-year 2020 revenue | Not applicable | $77.9 billion, up 8%, a company record |
| Q1 2021 revenue outlook | Not applicable | About $18.6 billion (GAAP) |
On 7nm, Intel said on the call that it was making good progress and that Gelsinger expected most of Intel's 2023 products to be made in its own fabs. Intel later renamed its 7nm process "Intel 4", and the first products on it, the Core Ultra "Meteor Lake" processors, launched in December 2023.
The image below is Intel's earnings infographic from the previous year (Q4 2019), kept from the original update for comparison.
Why this quarter mattered
The Q4 2020 report was a hand-over moment. The numbers were strong, driven by pandemic PC demand, but the market's attention was on manufacturing strategy. A beat on revenue did not answer whether Intel would outsource leading-edge chips to TSMC or recover its process lead in-house. Gelsinger answered that in March 2021 with the IDM 2.0 strategy: keep manufacturing in-house, use external foundries for some products, and open Intel's fabs to outside customers.
What happened next
For readers coming to this later: Gelsinger led Intel from February 2021 until he retired in December 2024. Lip-Bu Tan became CEO in March 2025.
Frequently asked questions
When did Pat Gelsinger become Intel CEO?
He was announced on 13 January 2021 and took over on 15 February 2021.
Did Intel beat its Q4 2020 guidance?
Yes. Revenue was $20.0 billion against $17.4 billion guided, and non-GAAP EPS was $1.52 against $1.10.
What was the 7nm issue?
In July 2020 Intel said its 7nm process was running about six months behind plan. The delay raised the question of whether Intel would keep leading-edge manufacturing in-house.
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