1984 Intel Annual Report

Both revenue and earnings hit record levels in 1984. Revenue grew 45%, and earnings were up 71% compared to the previous year. Net income included a one-time $19.3 million reversal of deferred tax on prior years’ income of Intel’s Domestic International Sales Corporations (DISCs). The Tax Reform Act of 1984 provides forgiveness of such tax deferred tax for the years 1972-84.

Unfortunately the year ended on a down note. Revenue for the last quarter was down 4% from the third quarter, and earnings dropped to $0.20 per share, about half as much as for the corresponding quarter of the previous year.

The extremely strong market for semiconductor devices that Intel enjoyed through the first half of the year collapsed near year-end as the rate of economic growth slowed. Customers, who earlier in the year had been stockpiling Intel products that were in short supply, stopped buying as they re-evaluated their short-term needs and found themselves with too much inventory. This was especially the case among makers of personal computers and other office automation equipment. Our order rate slowed to a level well below shipments, order cancellations rose, and many orders were rescheduled for later delivery.

It will probably take several months for this correction to run its course. Assuming continued overall economic strength, the order rate should return to normal as soon as customer inventories and supplier backlogs shrink closer to normal levels. While we expect this to occur sometime in the first half of 1985, we anticipate that the first two quarters will be difficult for us.

Both the rapid order growth in the first half and the cancellation and rescheduling of orders in the second half were heaviest in microprocessors and related components. Even with the cancellations, this was our greatest growth area, and we continue to be the world’s largest manufacturer of microprocessors.

Read the full 1984 Intel Annual Report.