By Lisa Thompson
NYSE: GCTS
READ THE FULL GCTS RESEARCH REPORT
GCT Semiconductor (NYSE: GCTS) reported its first quarter of 2026 and showed year-over-year revenue growth, and its second quarter of sequential revenue growth. The revenue growth was aided by a one-time license fee recorded in services. Its 5G chipset shipments increased by 58% sequentially. Next quarter, and going forward, we expect the sequential ramp to continue with more sales of products and fewer of services. In Q1, the company generated revenues from eight end-user customers, some going through distributors, up from three in Q4 2025.
We look to improving sequential results, new customer announcements, and new orders in the next few months, showing continued traction. We believe the stock is worth at least $4.40 based on $95 million in revenues in 2027.
Q1 2026 Earnings Results
In Q1, revenues were up 287% to $1.9 million compared to $496,000 in last year’s quarter. Product sales were $472,000 compared to $91,000 in Q1 2025. Service revenues, primarily from a one-time licensing fee, were $1.4 million compared to $405,000 a year ago. Gross margin was negative for products due to small volumes.
Operating expenses were $7.1 million this quarter compared to $7.8 million last year. The decline was entirely due to a reduction in R&D spending because of a $500,000 reduction in project-specific intellectual property expenses and a $400,000 reduction in professional services provided by Alpha for the completion of a 5G chipset design last year. The company expects to ramp up R&D spending in the latter half of the year. The operating loss declined to $6.1 million this quarter, compared to $7.7 million in 2025 as revenues started to ramp.
Interest expense was higher than last quarter at $1.8 million compared to $1.1 million. The pretax loss was $9.7 million versus a loss of $13.5 million. The net loss was $9.9 million compared to a loss of $13.5 million. The loss per share was $0.15 versus $0.26, and the non-GAAP loss per share was $0.11 versus a loss of $0.17 in Q1 2025. Average shares outstanding for the quarter increased to 66.1 million in 2025 versus 47.6 million in Q1 2025, or 39%.
During Q1 2026
On January 6, 2026, GCT announced the commercial launch of its 5G chipset.
On January 29, 2026, GCT announced a 5G licensing agreement with one of the world’s largest satellite communication providers.
On February 11, 2026, GCT and Skylo Technologies announced a partnership to advance next-generation satellite connectivity. The companies will jointly pursue chip and module certification to enable a new class of multi-use devices. These devices will allow customers to have ubiquitous connectivity by connecting to Skylo's network when terrestrial connectivity is out of reach.
GCT Semiconductor showed its latest 5G and IoT capabilities at its exhibit at Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2026, March 2nd through the 6th, in Barcelona, Spain. GCT unveiled its latest breakthroughs in 5G, NTN, eMMB, and IoT, for terrestrial and satellite networks. It and its partners, Skylo, Movandi, Smawave, Gemtek, TMY Technology, and Unitac, also jointly displayed their expanding portfolio of 5G modules and IoT solutions engineered for applications in fixed wireless access, smart mobility, and 5G-to-space.
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