AMD Q3 2026 results: record $13.4 billion revenue as data-centre sales nearly double, forecasts $17 billion next quarter
AMD's revenue rose 45% to a record $13.4bn as data-centre sales jumped 97% on MI450 AI chips. It forecast about $17bn for Q4, above estimates.
At a glance
- AMD reported record third-quarter revenue of $13.38 billion, up 45% from a year earlier and above the roughly $13.1 billion analysts expected.
- Data-centre revenue nearly doubled, up 97% to $8.55 billion, driven by EPYC server processors and the launch of the Instinct MI450 AI chips.
- Adjusted earnings were $2.09 a share against forecasts of about $1.95; GAAP net income rose 95% to $2.43 billion.
- AMD expects fourth-quarter revenue of about $17 billion, plus or minus 3%, above the roughly $16.2 billion Wall Street had pencilled in.
- The shares rose about 5% after hours to around $508, after being up almost 9% earlier in the evening.
Advanced Micro Devices reported record third-quarter revenue of $13.38 billion on Tuesday, November 3, up 45% from a year earlier, as sales of its data-centre chips almost doubled on demand for artificial-intelligence computing. The chipmaker also forecast fourth-quarter revenue of about $17 billion, well above what analysts had expected, and its shares rose about 5% in after-hours trading.
Data-centre revenue climbed 97% to $8.55 billion. AMD credited strong demand for its EPYC server processors and the launch of its Instinct MI450 graphics processors, its answer to Nvidia's AI accelerators.
The numbers against Wall Street's forecasts
| Q3 2026 | Q3 2025 | Change | Analysts expected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $13.38bn | $9.25bn | +45% | about $13.1bn |
| Adjusted EPS | $2.09 | $1.20 | +74% | about $1.95 |
| GAAP EPS | $1.46 | $0.75 | +95% | — |
| GAAP net income | $2.43bn | — | +95% | — |
| Adjusted gross margin | 56% | 54% | +2 pts | — |
| Q4 revenue forecast | about $17bn (±3%) | — | +66% y/y at midpoint | about $16.2bn |
The adjusted earnings figure leaves out a $1.1 billion charge from a change in the value of warrants AMD has issued to customers, worth roughly 66 cents a share. Free cash flow fell to $554 million from $1.56 billion in the second quarter.
Where the growth came from, and where it didn't
AMD's four businesses moved in very different directions:
- Data Center: $8.55 billion, up 97%. The engine of the quarter, now almost two-thirds of all revenue. Operating income from the unit was $2.88 billion.
- Client (PC processors): $2.95 billion, up 7%. Driven by Ryzen chips for laptops, but slightly below the roughly $3.06 billion analysts expected.
- Gaming: $773 million, down 40%. Lower sales of custom chips for game consoles and of graphics cards.
- Embedded: $1.11 billion, up 29%. A recovery in chips for industrial, car and communications equipment.
Helios racks reach the big AI labs
The quarter marked the first deliveries of Helios, AMD's complete rack-scale AI system that combines MI450 chips with sixth-generation EPYC processors. AMD said Anthropic, Meta, Microsoft, OpenAI and Oracle's cloud are already running models and workloads on the first Helios systems. Cloud company Vultr will deploy the first Helios systems built by Hewlett Packard Enterprise, and Europe's EuroHPC joint undertaking picked MI430X chips for the LUMI-AI supercomputer in Finland.
"We delivered a record quarter with revenue exceeding the high end of our guidance as Data Center segment sales nearly doubled year-over-year," chief executive Lisa Su said, adding that AMD expects growth to speed up in the fourth quarter as it scales Helios and production of its next server processor, codenamed Venice.
Chief financial officer Jean Hu said the outlook reflected "accelerating revenue and earnings growth" driven by data-centre demand.
Why the shares didn't run further
AMD closed Tuesday's regular session up 3.7% at $483.90. After the results it rose as much as almost 9% before settling about 5% higher at around $508. Two things held it back. Some investors had hoped for revenue above $13.4 billion, higher than the published consensus. And the forecast of a roughly 55% adjusted gross margin for the fourth quarter was seen as slightly light, because AI chips carry more expensive memory and earn lower margins than server processors.
The stock had fallen almost 24% in the month before the report, as investors questioned how long the AI spending boom can last. That worry deepened on Wednesday in Asia, where chip and AI shares sold off after Democrats were projected to win both houses of the US Congress, on concern that new lawmakers could slow the build-out of AI data centres.
What it means beyond Wall Street
For businesses and governments buying AI computing, a stronger AMD means a real second supplier to Nvidia, which should help on price and availability of the chips. For PC buyers, the modest growth in the Client unit points to a steady but unspectacular laptop market heading into the holiday season. For gamers, the 40% fall in Gaming reflects the late stage of the current console cycle.
Next dates to watch
AMD's fourth-quarter results are due in early February 2027. Before that, investors will watch Nvidia's quarterly report later in November for a read on AI chip demand, and AMD is also completing its pending purchases of World Labs and Taalas.
