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Qualcomm (QCOM) FY2026 results: revenue $43.1 billion, down 2.6% on the year

Qualcomm Inc. (QCOM) reported revenue of $43.1 billion for fiscal 2026, the year ended 27 September 2026, down 2.6% on the year before. Net income was $13.6 billion, up 145.9%, and diluted earnings per share $12.70. The figures are the company's own, from the 10-K it filed with the SEC on 4 November 2026.

Revenue
$43.1 billion
-2.6% on the year
FY2019FY2026
Operating margin
20.1%
27.9% a year earlier
FY2019FY2026
Net income
$13.6 billion
+145.9% on the year
FY2019FY2026
Diluted EPS
$12.70
+153.5% on the year
FY2019FY2026

this yearthe year beforeHover a bar for its figure.

The year in brief

What management said about the year

Guidance figures: 7 new, 2 kept.

  • Non-GAAP revenue fell 7%: Non-GAAP revenue was $10,442 million, down 7% from $11,270 million; GAAP revenue was $10,322 million, down 8%. Non-GAAP excludes QSI, share-based compensation and other items.
  • Non-GAAP EPS fell 28%: Diluted EPS was $1.17 on a GAAP basis, against a $2.89 loss a year earlier. Non-GAAP diluted EPS was $2.17, against $3.00, down 28%.
  • Full-year non-GAAP revenue down 2%: GAAP revenue for fiscal 2026 was $43,120 million, down 3%; non-GAAP revenue was $43,240 million, down 2%. Non-GAAP earnings before taxes were $12,976 million, down 16%.
  • QCT quarterly margin fell to 24%: QCT fourth-quarter revenue was $9,015 million, down 8%, with EBT of $2,142 million, down 26%, a 24% margin against 29%.
  • Automotive passed $2 billion in a quarter: The company reported that QCT Automotive revenue reached $2 billion in a single quarter for the first time, growing 89% year over year.
Read the Q4 FY2026 earnings call summary

From this 10-K

Qualcomm incorporated in California in 1985 and reincorporated in Delaware in 1991. It earns its revenue principally from selling integrated circuit products, also called chips, chipsets or modules, and from licensing its intellectual property, including patents. The company has licensed its patents to hundreds of companies. At 27 September 2026 it had approximately 57,000 full-time, part-time and temporary workers in 38 countries.

Qualcomm Inc., the 10-K for 2026

Qualcomm incorporated in California in 1985 and reincorporated in Delaware in 1991. It earns its revenue principally from selling integrated circuit products, also called chips, chipsets or modules, and from licensing its intellectual property, including patents. The company has licensed its patents to hundreds of companies. At 27 September 2026 it had approximately 57,000 full-time, part-time and temporary workers in 38 countries.

How the business is organised

Qualcomm has three reportable segments. QCT (Qualcomm CDMA Technologies) is the semiconductor business. QTL (Qualcomm Technology Licensing) is the licensing business. QSI (Qualcomm Strategic Initiatives) makes strategic investments. The company also reports nonreportable businesses: Data Center, QGOV (Qualcomm Government Technologies) and Modular. The company says that from the first quarter of fiscal 2027 Data Center will be included in QCT.

Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. (QTI) and its subsidiaries operate substantially all of the products and services businesses, including QCT, and substantially all engineering and research and development. QUALCOMM Incorporated operates QTL and owns the vast majority of the patent portfolio. QTI has no right to grant licences under those patents.

What it sells

QCT reports revenue in three streams: handsets, automotive and IoT. Its Snapdragon and Dragonwing families combine application processors with wireless connectivity, including a cellular modem, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and positioning. QCT also sells supporting parts such as RF transceivers, RF front-end components, power management chips, audio codecs and speaker amps, and it sells some of these as individual components.

In automotive, the Snapdragon Digital Chassis platforms cover connectivity, digital cockpit and advanced driver assistance and automated driving. In IoT, the products range from PCs and extended reality devices to networking and industrial equipment. Networking products include Wi-Fi, Ethernet and passive optical network chips, wireless access points and routers.

The Data Center business sells Qualcomm Dragonfly products, which cover CPUs, AI accelerators and connectivity, together with custom silicon solutions. Some Dragonfly products are still in development. Modular provides AI software platforms, tools and cloud-based services. QGOV provides development services and sells related products to United States government agencies and their contractors.

How the chips are made

Other than certain RF front-end modules and RF filter products, QCT is fabless. It does not own foundries and relies on third parties for wafer fabrication, assembly, packaging and most testing. The primary foundry suppliers are Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), Samsung Electronics and GlobalFoundries. Memory for certain products comes mainly from Micron Technology and Samsung Electronics. Assembly and test is done mainly by Amkor Technology, Advanced Semiconductor Engineering, Siliconware Precision Industries and STATS ChipPAC. Most of these suppliers are in the Asia-Pacific region.

For the RF front-end modules and filters it makes itself, front-end wafer fabrication is in Germany and Singapore. Back-end assembly, packaging, testing and distribution preparation are in China and Singapore.

How licensing works

QTL licenses its cellular standard-essential patents for 3G, 4G and 5G devices worldwide. It can also license them together with other Qualcomm patents. Licensees make products such as handsets, tablets, PCs, data modem cards, connected vehicle modules, wireless access points and small cells.

Revenue comes mainly from per-unit royalties, which licensees pay quarterly. Royalties are generally a percentage of the licensee's wholesale selling price of the complete product, net of certain permitted deductions. Some products have per-unit minimums or caps, and some carry a fixed amount per unit. It has faced governmental investigations and legal proceedings over its licensing practices.

Customers and competition

A small number of customers and licensees have historically made up a large part of revenue. Apple and Samsung each accounted for 10% or more of consolidated revenue in fiscal 2026. QCT sells mainly under purchase orders. Customers can generally reschedule delivery dates within a set time and cancel orders before shipment, sometimes with a cancellation fee. The company says it expects Apple to primarily use its own modem products in its devices going forward.

QCT competes with semiconductor designers and manufacturers worldwide, and with products its customers develop in-house. The company lists performance, level of integration, quality, standards compliance, price, time-to-market, system cost and customer support among the main competitive factors. It notes that a portion of its business is concentrated in China.

Its people

Most employees work in engineering or other technical roles, across more than 200 locations. Voluntary turnover was approximately 6% in fiscal 2026. The company has research and development centers in various locations around the world, and its engineering skills include modem, SoC, AI, RF front-end, multimedia and data center networking.

From Qualcomm's annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended 27 September 2026. The filing

Written from the 10-K filed 4 November 2026: read the full 10-K.

The four quarters: Q1 FY2026 · Q2 FY2026 · Q3 FY2026 · Q4 FY2026

Income statement (profit and loss)

$ millionFY2026FY2025FY2024On the yearLast 8 years
Revenue43,12044,28438,962-2.6%
Cost of revenue20,22219,73817,060+2.5%
Gross profit22,89824,54621,902-6.7%
Gross margin53.1%55.4%56.2%
Research and development10,2079,0428,893+12.9%
Selling, general and administrative3,7013,1102,759+19.0%
Operating income8,65812,35510,071-29.9%
Operating margin20.1%27.9%25.8%
Interest expense689664697+3.8%
Pre-tax income9,41412,66310,336-25.7%
Income tax-4,2147,122226
Effective tax rate-44.8%56.2%2.2%
Net income13,6285,54110,142+145.9%
Net margin31.6%12.5%26.0%
Diluted EPS$12.70$5.01$8.97+153.5%
$ million except per share.
Read moreFree cash flow is operating cash flow less capital expenditure; the effective tax rate is income tax over pre-tax income; margins are the line over revenue. Gross profit is revenue less cost of revenue, and operating income is revenue less the company's own total costs, where the statement does not print those lines. Those four are arithmetic on the filed numbers; everything else is as filed. Money is in $ million as the company files it, or in $ billion by the switch above the tables; per share figures and share counts are as they are.

Cash flow

$ millionFY2026FY2025FY2024On the yearLast 8 years
Operating cash flow11,14514,01212,202-20.5%
Capital expenditure2,4941,1921,041+109.2%
Free cash flow8,65112,82011,161-32.5%
Free cash flow margin20.1%28.9%28.6%
Cash from investing-2,039-800-3,623
Cash from financing-12,295-13,196-9,269
Depreciation and amortisation1,6301,6021,706+1.7%
Share-based compensation3,4522,7832,648+24.0%
Buybacks7,8178,7914,121-11.1%
Dividends paid3,8543,8053,687+1.3%
Dividend per share$3.62$3.48$3.30+4.0%
Diluted shares, weighted1,073m1,105m1,130m-2.9%
Shares outstanding at period end1,072m1,074m1,113m-0.2%

Balance sheet

$ millionFY2026FY2025FY2024On the yearLast 8 years
Shareholders' equity30,40121,20626,274+43.4%
Debt15,11214,81114,634+2.0%
Operating lease liabilities759730708+4.0%
Other liabilities14,55713,39613,538+8.7%
Total liabilities and equity60,82950,14355,154+21.3%
Fixed assets6,1044,6904,665+30.1%
Goodwill16,37411,35810,799+44.2%
Intangible assets1,9251,1481,244+67.7%
Investments3,0454,6355,451-34.3%
Cash and equivalents4,6365,5207,849-16.0%
Receivables2,6712,8552,347-6.4%
Inventory8,6406,5266,423+32.4%
Other assets17,43413,41116,376+30.0%
Total assets60,82950,14355,154+21.3%

10-K for the year ended 27 September 2026, filed 4 November 2026: the filing.