TSMC, the world’s largest contract chipmaker, reported a record third quarter and raised its outlook for the fourth. In a press release dated 15 October 2026, the company said consolidated revenue was NT$1,494.24 billion, net income was NT$763.06 billion, and diluted earnings per share were NT$29.43 (US$4.60 per ADR unit) for the quarter ended 30 September 2026.
The quarter, in TSMC’s figures
Year-over-year, third-quarter revenue increased 50.9%, while net income and diluted EPS both increased 68.7%. Compared with the second quarter of 2026, revenue rose 17.6% and net income rose 8.0%. All figures were prepared in accordance with TIFRS on a consolidated basis, TSMC said.
In US dollars, third-quarter revenue was $46.72 billion, up 41.2% year-over-year and 16.2% from the previous quarter.
Gross margin was 66.4%, operating margin was 58.7%, and net profit margin was 51.1%.
Process mix
Shipments of 2-nanometer accounted for 8% of total wafer revenue; 3-nanometer accounted for 33%; 5-nanometer accounted for 28%; and 7-nanometer accounted for 10%. Advanced technologies, defined as 7-nanometer and more advanced, accounted for 79% of total wafer revenue.
Q4 guidance
Management expects fourth-quarter 2026 revenue between US$52.3 billion and US$54.3 billion. Based on an exchange-rate assumption of 1 US dollar to 31.8 NT dollars, gross profit margin is expected between 65% and 67%, and operating profit margin between 56.5% and 58.5%.
“Moving into fourth quarter 2026, we expect our business to be supported by continued strong demand for our leading-edge process technologies, including the steep ramp-up of our 2-nanometer technology,” said Wendell Huang, TSMC’s senior vice president and chief financial officer.
How that compared with estimates
According to CNBC, LSEG SmartEstimates had pointed to NT$1.47 trillion in revenue and NT$746.34 billion in net income. CNBC also reported that TSMC posted a record net profit for a sixth straight quarter, and that high-performance computing accounted for 68% of revenue and smartphones 21%.
What this means
- The print beat the Street on the LSEG numbers CNBC cited. Revenue and net income came in above those estimates.
- Advanced nodes dominate. Nearly four-fifths of wafer revenue was 7nm and below, with 3nm the largest single slice.
- Q4 implies another step up. The US$52.3–54.3 billion revenue guide sits well above the US$46.72 billion just reported.
Sources
- TSMC, “TSMC Reports Third Quarter EPS of NT$29.43”, 15 October 2026. https://pr.tsmc.com/english/news/3346
- CNBC (Jenny Lee), “TSMC posts record profit for a sixth straight quarter, beating estimates on AI boom”, 15 October 2026. https://www.cnbc.com/2026/10/15/tsmc-third-quarter-profit-global-ai-.html
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