Qualcomm reported $10.3 billion of fourth quarter revenue, down 8%, with handset chip sales falling 26% as the company staked fiscal 2027 on AI data centers.
By the numbers: Handset revenue fell 26% to $5.14 billion in the quarter ended September 27. Automotive jumped 89% to $1.99 billion, its first $2 billion quarter, and IoT rose 4% to $1.89 billion.
- Full year revenue came in at $43.1 billion, down 3%, with GAAP earnings of $12.70 a share and non-GAAP earnings of $10.54.
What they're saying: "Fiscal 2027 marks the start of our non-handset revenue inflection, including the ramp of our Data Center business," chief executive Cristiano Amon said, projecting non-handset revenue growth above 60% year over year.
- Qualcomm reiterated a $5 billion data center revenue target for fiscal 2027 and told analysts it expects roughly $15 billion by 2029, about 30% of the business, per The Verge.
The big picture: Global smartphone sales are running about 20% below 2025, and Qualcomm has signed multi-generation AI chip agreements with Amazon and Meta to replace that growth.
Yes, but: The release flags a broad-based increase in input costs across wafer fabrication, assembly, test, advanced packaging and memory, with the full benefit of its own price increases arriving only in the second half of fiscal 2027.
- Shares slid more than 7% after hours on the soft forecast, per CNBC. Guidance for the current quarter is $10.4 billion to $11.2 billion.
Why it matters: Qualcomm rode the smartphone for two decades, and its bet that data center silicon carries the next one is the clearest sign yet that the AI buildout is rewriting who sells chips to whom.
