Arm plc(ARM) - 2026 Q2 - Earnings Call Transcript

Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - Revenue for Q2 2026 reached $1.14 billion, up 34% year-on-year, marking the best second quarter ever and the third consecutive billion-dollar quarter [5][11] - Royalty revenue hit a record $620 million, up 21% year-on-year, driven by growth across all major markets [5][12] - Licensing revenue increased by 56% to $515 million, reflecting strong demand for next-generation architectures [5][12] - Non-GAAP operating income was $467 million, up 43% year-on-year, resulting in a non-GAAP operating margin of 41.1% [15][11] - Non-GAAP EPS was $0.39, exceeding the midpoint of guidance by 6 cents [15][11] Business Line Data and Key Metrics Changes - Royalty revenue from smartphones grew significantly, driven by higher royalty rates per chip, while data center royalties doubled year-on-year due to the deployment of Arm-based chips by hyperscaler companies [12][5] - The addition of five new CSS licenses brought the total to 19 across 11 companies, indicating strong demand for compute subsystems [8][12] - CSS has become a starting point for customers building next-generation silicon, with significant interest in the newly launched Lumix CSS platform [9][12] Market Data and Key Metrics Changes - The data center market saw unprecedented compute demand, with Arm's neoverse royalties more than doubling year-on-year [5][20] - China accounted for approximately 22% of sales in Q2, with strong demand driven by licensing deals [67][68] - The mix of royalty revenues from cloud and networking is expected to increase, potentially reaching 15-20% of total royalty revenues [52][55] Company Strategy and Development Direction - The company announced a strategic partnership with Meta to enhance AI efficiency across various compute layers [6][5] - Continued investment in R&D is prioritized to meet the increasing demand for Arm technology, particularly in AI and edge computing [11][15] - The company is exploring opportunities to expand beyond its current platform into additional compute subsystems, chiplets, or complex SOCs [10][11] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management highlighted that power has become a bottleneck in data centers, driving the need for more efficient compute platforms [19][20] - The demand for compute is expected to grow as AI workloads transition from cloud to edge devices, presenting significant opportunities for Arm [63][64] - The company remains confident in its long-term growth trajectory and strategy to enable AI everywhere [16][11] Other Important Information - Non-GAAP operating expenses were $648 million, up 31% year-on-year, reflecting strong R&D investment [15][11] - The company signed a deal to acquire Dream Big Semiconductor, which will enhance its offerings in high-speed communications [24][11] Q&A Session Summary Question: AI opportunity and data center deals - Management expressed confidence in Arm's strategic positioning for AI deals, noting that power efficiency is critical and Arm's technology is about 50% more efficient than competitors [19][20] Question: Acquisition of Dream Big Semiconductor - The acquisition aims to enhance Arm's capabilities in scale-up and scale-out networking, which is crucial for data center demands [24][11] Question: Related party revenue and SoftBank relationship - Management indicated a significant increase in related party revenue, with ongoing collaboration with SoftBank providing opportunities for technology integration in data centers [26][27] Question: OPEX and go-to-market strategies - Management acknowledged the increase in OPEX but emphasized that revenue growth is outpacing OPEX increases, ensuring a balanced approach to investment [30][31] Question: SoftBank contribution and licensing pipeline - The contribution from SoftBank was approximately $178 million, with a strong licensing pipeline expected for the remainder of the year [36][37] Question: Revenue opportunity from Stargate - Management noted that the demand for compute has grown since the Stargate announcement, with expectations for significant revenue opportunities in the coming years [44][45] Question: Lumix CSS royalty revenues - Early royalty revenues from Lumix CSS were reported, indicating faster-than-expected adoption due to existing partnerships [46][47] Question: Chip demand and implications for Arm - Management highlighted the shift from cloud to edge computing, with increasing demand for Arm's scalable solutions for AI workloads [63][64] Question: Performance in China - Strong demand in China was attributed to significant licensing deals, with licensing being a larger driver than royalties this quarter [67][68]