UPDATE: Imperial Initiates Coverage On Intel

In a note dated July 14, Imperial Capital analyst Ashok Kumar initiated coverage of Intel INTC with an Outperform rating and a $37 price target.

Kumar's initiation comes in the run-up to the company's second quarter 2014 earnings results, which is said to be scheduled for Tuesday after the close.

Kumar began the note by reviewing Intel's performance from the prior quarter. This included $12.76 billion in revenue and $2.53 billion in operating income. He finished his review by saying, "As a result of strong profits and reduced costs, Intel is now sitting on over $19 billion in cash, cash equivalents, and trading assets, all of which can be utilized for forthcoming growth opportunities."

Moving on, Kumar discussed the estimates/guidance for the the company's second quarter following its pre-announcement on June 12.

Estimates/Guidance

• $0.52 non-GAAP EPS (Street estimate)
• Revenue of $13.7 billion (Guidance)
• Gross margins of 64 percent (Guidance) 61 percent +/- a few points (estimate)

Kumar finished by noting that the Street's full-year 2014 revenue estimate of $54.6 billion "could prove conservative."