INSTANT VIEW - Intel smashes expectations, sees strong Q3

LOS ANGELES/SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Intel's (INTC.O) quarterly results smashed Wall Street expectations on Tuesday, and the chip maker offered a forecast for current-quarter revenue that also topped analysts' estimates.

COMMENTARY:

STEVE NEIMETH, PORTFOLIO MANAGER, SUNAMERICA MUTUAL FUND

"It seems like very good news. Revenues are much better than expected, which was a surprise to many investors due to the Dell numbers, which spooked investors. In addition, gross margins looked better than expected, which will likely result in the stock being up tomorrow.

"This bodes well for the sector, which many believe looks inexpensive. It bodes well for many of the large-cap tech companies like IBM, Microsoft and Cisco, which have correlation due to similarities in their end market.

"Many investors will be focussed on their gross margins and how they were able to come in at such strong levels. Was it driven by a change in depreciation levels, or a positive mix of sales? If the latter, it will be extreme positive for stocks tomorrow."

UNNI NARAYANAN, CEO OF PRIMARY GLOBAL RESEARCH

"We felt things were going to be better than expected. I did not expect it to be this much better.

"The fundamentals of the company around the three vectors -- server, desktop, and ultimately netbooks -- look solid, with a big rebound happening -- we forecast -- close to mid-2010.