Q3 Profit Hits High, Gross Margin at 70.6%
Memory maker Winbond reported Q3 2026 results on November 3. Benefiting from rising memory prices and an improved product mix, consolidated revenue for the quarter was 82.331 billion yuan, up 37.6% QoQ and up 278.2% YoY. Gross profit was 58.101 billion yuan, up 46.6% QoQ, with gross margin at 70.6%, up 4.4 percentage points from Q2. Operating profit was 43.784 billion yuan, up 51.1% QoQ, with operating margin at 53.2%, showing a clear improvement in profitability.
Net profit attributable to parent reached 35.422 billion yuan, up 45.7% QoQ and about 11 times YoY, with EPS of 7.58 yuan. For the first three quarters, consolidated revenue reached 180.427 billion yuan, up 187.39% YoY; net profit attributable to parent was 69.853 billion yuan, with basic EPS of 15.32 yuan, a sharp increase from a year earlier.
73.163 Billion for Kaohsiung Module B, Targeting 16nm
The board also approved a capital expenditure budget of 73.163 billion yuan, mainly for the Module B expansion of the 12-inch fab in the Southern Taiwan Science Park Kaohsiung Campus, covering plant construction, electromechanical facilities and procurement of long-lead-time production equipment. The new fab is expected to start small-volume shipments in H2 2029, with full capacity in 2030.
General Manager Pei-Ming Chen said the Module B design is largely complete, planned for 16nm process with monthly capacity of about 50,000 to 60,000 wafers. Compared with Module A in Kaohsiung, which is expected to reach 24,000 wafers per month by year-end, Module B planned capacity is about 2 to 2.5 times. For existing Module A, monthly capacity was about 16,000 wafers in Q3, expected to rise to 24,000 wafers by year-end, and to stay at 24,000 wafers per month in 2027 to 2028. The company said part of the capacity has been reserved for customers with long-term supply contracts, and it is in talks with strategic customers on long-term cooperation to meet future memory demand.
Q4 Outlook: AI Demand Supports, Momentum Adjusts
Looking ahead, Winbond said AI servers, networking and automotive electronics still support memory demand. However, after front-loaded stocking in the first three quarters, pull-in momentum in parts of the PC and consumer electronics markets began to adjust in Q4, with relatively weak non-AI demand. Q4 operations are still expected to have growth opportunities, but momentum may be weaker than in Q3. Overall, the company is positive on subsequent memory market demand, and expects tight supply for some high-density NOR Flash and customized memory products to extend into 2027.