Qualcomm beats fiscal Q4 estimates as handset revenue decline offsets growth in automotive

Qualcomm clears fiscal fourth-quarter estimates

Qualcomm reported better-than-expected fiscal fourth-quarter results for the quarter ended September 2026. One report put revenue at $10.44 billion, down 7.4% from a year earlier, with EPS of $2.17 versus $3.00 in the year-ago quarter. The revenue beat the cited $10.15 billion consensus estimate by 2.92%, while EPS was $0.01 above the $2.16 estimate.

The figures were broadly consistent across coverage of the earnings report, which also produced revenue and earnings surprises of 2.92% and 0.46%, respectively. Another report listed slightly different GAAP revenue and adjusted EPS figures—$10.32 billion and $2.17—against analyst expectations of approximately $10.12 billion and $2.16.

Handset weakness weighs on QCT

Qualcomm's QCT business generated $9.02 billion in revenue for the quarter, down 8.2% year over year but above the $8.74 billion average estimate cited by six analysts. Handset revenue within QCT fell 26.2% to $5.14 billion, below the $5.22 billion estimate and below the approximately $5.3 billion figure expected in another estimate comparison.

The handset segment's decline was larger than the absolute increase reported in automotive. QTL, Qualcomm's licensing business, generated $1.30 billion in revenue, down 7.5%, while pretax income was $918 million versus a $907.53 million estimate. QCT pretax income was $2.14 billion, compared with a $2.09 billion estimate.

Automotive and IoT grew

Automotive revenue rose 89% year over year to $1.99 billion, above the $1.71 billion average estimate. IoT revenue increased 4.5% to $1.89 billion, also above the $1.82 billion average estimate. Together, automotive and IoT revenue grew 36% year over year in the quarter.

The divergent segment performance did not translate into stronger near-term profit guidance. Qualcomm forecast first-quarter revenue of $10.4 billion to $11.2 billion and adjusted EPS of $2.15 to $2.35. The revenue guidance midpoint was above the approximately $10.6 billion consensus, while the adjusted EPS midpoint of $2.25 was below the roughly $2.32 analyst expectation.

Investors focused on the outlook

Shares fell after the report as investors weighed the earnings beat against handset weakness and the adjusted EPS outlook. One report recorded an 8% drop, while another said Qualcomm shares declined 5% after hours. The reviewed reporting associated the reaction with the slightly weaker profit forecast, but did not establish a broader market cause.

Separately, Qualcomm and SpaceX announced a deal under which Qualcomm's Dragonwing Cellular Infrastructure technology would support the terrestrial network for Starlink Mobile, with a 5G network launch planned for 2027. The announcement represented a separate development from the fiscal fourth-quarter results.