It’s been a tough few weeks for Intel, but the company has some positive news in the form of its fourth quarter financials.
The company beat estimates from analysts with revenues of $16.37 billion and non-GAAP earnings of $1.08 per share. Full-year revenue was $62.8 billion, with $3.46 earnings per share. 2016 saw $59.5 billion and $2.72.
The quarter is a significant increase from last year’s 79 cents, but CEO Brian Krzanich opened the earnings call with talk about Meltdown and Spectre.
The critical flaws are present in almost all Intel CPUs, and it’s been a rush to produce patches and updates for the issues.
Hardware Replacement
However, some analysts believe the only way to fully mitigate the flaws is new hardware, and Krzanich has confirmed that new chips will be different.
The CEO said he’s “acutely aware” that more needs to be done beyond software fixes. The company’s new processors will circumvent the flaw, with the first appearing later this year.
“We’re working to incorporate silicon-based changed to future products that will directly address the Spectre and Meltdown threats in hardware,” said Krzanich.
Short-term, Intel is working on more updates, but Krzanich says the threat is constantly changing. He assures that some of the company’s best minds are working on the problem, likely in a bid to calm investors.
“We are committed to the task, and I am confident we are up to the challenge,” he added.
It seems to have worked. Despite the Meltdown and Spectre concerns, the company’s stock price was up 3.75% in after-hours trading.
However, the company still faces scrutiny from Congress. It’s been asked, alongside Microsoft and Google, why the flaw was secret for so long.
