Qualcomm Q4 revenue falls 7% to $10.44 billion, guides Q1 to $10.4-11.2 billion

What Qualcomm reported

Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM) reported fiscal fourth-quarter revenue of $10.44 billion on a non-GAAP basis on Nov. 4, 2026, down 7% from $11.27 billion a year earlier, and guided first-quarter fiscal 2027 revenue to $10.4 billion to $11.2 billion. Non-GAAP earnings per share were $2.17, down 28% from $3.00. The quarter ended Sept. 27, 2026.^[1]

On a GAAP basis, revenue was $10.32 billion, down 8% from $11.27 billion, and net income was $1.25 billion, against a net loss of $3.12 billion in the year-earlier quarter. GAAP diluted EPS was $1.17. Qualcomm said in the release that its non-GAAP revenue was at the high end of its guidance.^[1]

For the full fiscal year, GAAP revenue was $43.12 billion, down 3%, and non-GAAP EPS was $10.54, down 12% from $12.03. GAAP EPS of $12.70 includes a $5.7 billion income tax benefit, or $5.32 per share, from releasing a valuation allowance set up in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025, the release said.^[1]

Handsets fall while automotive passes $2 billion

Chip segment QCT revenue fell 8% to $9.02 billion. Handset revenue dropped 26% to $5.14 billion from $6.96 billion, and handsets made up 57% of QCT revenue, down from 71% a year earlier (calculated from the release's segment table). Yahoo Finance reported the handset figure was below what analysts projected.^[1][2]

Automotive revenue rose 89% to $1.99 billion, the first quarter above $2 billion by Qualcomm's rounding. Internet of things (IoT) revenue rose 4% to $1.89 billion. Automotive and IoT combined came to $3.88 billion against $2.86 billion a year earlier, a 36% increase calculated from the release's figures.^[1]

The licensing unit QTL reported revenue of $1.30 billion, down 7%, with 70% pre-tax margin. Qualcomm said it renewed long-term license agreements with Apple, Huawei and Transsion. The release did not give terms or royalty rates.^[1]

Guidance, memory costs and the data center plan

For the quarter ending in December, Qualcomm guided revenue of $10.4 billion to $11.2 billion. The $10.8 billion midpoint is 3.4% above the fourth-quarter non-GAAP figure. Yahoo Finance said the midpoint was above a $10.6 billion Wall Street outlook, without naming the data provider. Guided non-GAAP EPS is $2.15 to $2.35, and QCT revenue is guided to $9.0 billion to $9.6 billion.^[1][2]

Qualcomm said the semiconductor industry faces higher input costs across wafer fabrication, packaging, memory and other materials. It said it is raising product prices to reflect them and expects the full benefit in QCT gross margins in the second half of fiscal 2027. Yahoo Finance reported that the memory shortage has pushed up device prices and hurt demand.^[1][2]

Chief executive Cristiano Amon said fiscal 2027 is the "start of our non-handset revenue inflection" and that Qualcomm expects non-handset revenue to grow more than 60%, with a data center revenue target of $5 billion reiterated. The release also announced a multi-generational product collaboration with Amazon for AI data centers. Yahoo Finance said Qualcomm signed an agreement with Amazon in September for custom chips for AWS AI infrastructure.^[1][2]

What happens next

Qualcomm returned $2.0 billion to shareholders in the quarter, $1.01 billion in buybacks and $987 million in dividends, and $11.7 billion over the fiscal year. Its guidance for the quarter ending in December is the first to include data center revenue in QCT, according to a footnote in the release.^[1]