What to Watch in Broadcom Upcoming Earnings
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What happened
Broadcom, a U.S. semiconductor and infrastructure-software company, reported quarterly results after the market close on Wednesday. Adjusted earnings were $3.32 per share on $29.59 billion in revenue, compared with LSEG consensus estimates of $3.24 and $29.36 billion. Revenue rose 86 percent from $15.95 billion a year earlier, and net income more than tripled to $13.09 billion, or $2.68 per share. CEO Hock Tan said the company aims to double AI-related revenue to $115 billion in fiscal 2027 and to $230 billion in fiscal 2028, citing custom chips for Google, OpenAI, Anthropic, and Meta. Broadcom guided next-quarter revenue to $34.8 billion, slightly below the $35.03 billion analysts expected, and shares rose in extended trading.
BLINDSPOT.
Only left-leaning outlets are covering this story
— the other side's media is silent.
Omitted — what each side leaves out
Unpacked
The story exists only on one side: right-leaning outlets had not covered Broadcom's earnings as of publication. Left-leaning coverage reports a quarterly beat and a plan to double AI revenue, yet it never answers the Alphabet supplier question it had raised that morning. That preview treated the Google relationship as under question after a custom silicon deal with Marvell. The earnings piece instead has the CEO speeding Google processor shipments. It also has the finance chief describing residual value guarantees as contingent liabilities to AI labs. A reader of the silent side misses the print, the Google pledges, and that financing exposure.
Left-leaning coverage leads the earnings piece with a "rosy forecast" even while recording that the next quarter's revenue outlook came in below the analyst consensus.
How large are those residual-value guarantees, and did Alphabet's Marvell deal change the Google orders now being touted?
Bottom line
Right-leaning outlets have not reported the earnings. CNBC never says whether the Marvell deal reduces Google's orders, even as the CEO still promises tens of billions of dollars of processors a year to that customer.
The receipts — 5 facts one side's coverage lacks
- The Google parent struck a custom silicon deal with Marvell, putting Broadcom's relationship with Alphabet under question
- Broadcom is looking to double AI revenue to $115 billion in fiscal 2027
- Broadcom expects fiscal fourth-quarter revenue of $34.8 billion, versus $35.03 billion expected by analysts
- Broadcom is looking for Anthropic to deploy 5 gigawatts of TPU 8i chips in 2027
- CEO Hock Tan said in June that Broadcom's long-term agreement with Alphabet remains very, very strong
The Left View
CNBC covered the story in a Jim Cramer Investing Club preview and in a post-release earnings report. The preview said investors wanted a guidance raise after the stock sold off last quarter when management only reiterated its fiscal 2026 AI semiconductor revenue outlook, and it flagged Broadcom’s relationship with Alphabet after Google’s parent announced a custom-silicon deal with Marvell; it noted that CEO Hock Tan had said in June the long-term agreement remained very strong. After the release, CNBC reported the modest beat on earnings and revenue, the slightly light next-quarter revenue guide, semiconductor revenue more than tripling to $16.7 billion, and Tan’s comments on Google TPU shipments to Google and Anthropic, OpenAI’s Jalapeno chip, Meta’s MTIA accelerator, and multiyear AI revenue targets. CNBC also reported that Broadcom may provide residual value guarantees as contingent liabilities to AI labs, that Apple said it would spend more with Broadcom for U.S. chip production, and that the stock has lagged the S&P 500 this year after a multiyear AI-era rally. The same CNBC programming linked the session to Nvidia’s jump after Dell’s results and to market moves around oil, bond yields, and U.S. military strikes against Iran.
Our Take (balanced)
The story is substantive: it is built on a company earnings release, named executives, LSEG and StreetAccount estimates, and specific dollar, customer, and deployment figures that can be checked against the filing and conference-call transcript. Established facts are the reported quarter (adjusted EPS of $3.32, revenue of $29.59 billion), the next-quarter revenue outlook of $34.8 billion, and that management publicly projected AI revenue of $115 billion in fiscal 2027 and $230 billion in fiscal 2028 while describing custom-chip work with Google, OpenAI, Anthropic, and Meta. What is not yet realized is whether those multiyear revenue and gigawatt-deployment targets are met, and the size and terms of any residual value guarantees, which the company described as possible contingent liabilities. No right-leaning outlet has reported this. Watch Broadcom’s 8-K and 10-Q for guarantee language, the next quarter versus the $34.8 billion guide, and any customer confirmation of TPU and Jalapeno shipment timelines.
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