The company cited weaker-than-expected demand for its chips and a slight decline in market share as the reason for the warning. Last year, the chip giant issued an earnings warning for the fourth quarter and narrowed its forecast for the third quarter as well.
Intel said it now expects its first-quarter revenue to be in the range of US$8.7 billion to US$9.1 billion, compared with its previous forecast of US$9.1 billion to US$9.7 billion.
The company also said it expects its research and development costs and its administrative expenses to be lower than previously expected in the first quarter, due to its lower-than-anticipated revenue.
Intel plans to issue an updated outlook for its business when it reports its first-quarter results on April 19.
Despite the sharply lower revenue forecast for the first quarter, Intel's shares did not take a beating when the markets opened during their regular session.
The Santa Clara, California-based company, which issued its first-quarter warning before the markets opened, was down a slight 27 cents, or just more than 1 percent, to US$20.22 a share in early trading.
Analysts, such as Christopher Danely of JP Morgan Securities, estimated Intel lost roughly two to three points of market share in the first quarter, as the chip giant encountered excess inventory among its customers and a slight weakness in demand in the quarter.
"Although the company lowered guidance, we expect further downside to (analysts) consensus estimates due to lower gross margins," Danely said in his research report.
