Credit: Broadcom
Apple supplier Broadcom has said that a ramp-up of annual chip shipments would be later this year than most, likely signaling that the next iPhone will arrive after the usual late September launch date.
Broadcom, which earned about a fifth of its revenue from Apple in 2019, said a ramp-up of chip shipments for what analysts believe is the next iPhone will run into the final quarter of the calendar year, a quarter later than most years.
In June, Broadcom had warned that revenues for its just-ended quarter would be below expectations because of a delayed phone launch from "our large North American mobile phone customer" that analysts believe is Apple.
Most analysts have already pushed out their expected launch date of Apple's much-anticipated 5G-enabled iPhone to October after travel restrictions imposed by the novel coronavirus pandemic disrupted work on the devices.
Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Broadcom, meanwhile, forecast current fourth-quarter revenue above Wall Street estimates on Thursday, encouraged by the upcoming 5G phone launches and strong demand for its data-center chips from the growing remote work market. Shares rose 0.3% in after-hours trading on the results.
The company forecast fourth-quarter revenue of US$6.4 billion, plus or minus US$150 million. Analysts on average were expecting revenue of US$6.18 billion, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.
The pandemic-led shift to work-from-home has fired up demand for infrastructure such as data centers at a time when the semi-conductor industry is gearing up for the launch of 5G phones that use higher priced chips.
Broadcom posted a 5.6 per cent rise in third-quarter revenue to US$5.82 billion, ahead of estimates of US$5.76 billion.
Net income attributable to common stock fell to US$614 million, or US$1.45 per share, from US$715 million, or US$1.71 per share, a year earlier.
Excluding items, the company reported a profit of US$5.40 per share, topping analysts' average estimate of US$5.24.
Shares of the company, which have gained about 11 per cent this year, rose 1.7 per cent in extended trading.
(Reporting by Neha Malara in Bengaluru and Stephen Nellis in San Francisco; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila and Richard Pullin)
