Synaptics (NASDAQ:SYNA) reported fiscal second-quarter 2026 results that management described as another “solid quarter,” driven by continued strength in its core IoT portfolio and ongoing momentum in what the company sees as a broader industry shift toward Physical and Edge AI.
Quarterly results extend multi-quarter growth streak
Revenue in fiscal Q2 was $302.5 million, up 13% year-over-year and above the midpoint of the company’s guidance range, according to CFO Ken Rizvi. CEO Rahul Patel said the company has now delivered its fifth consecutive quarter of double-digit year-over-year revenue growth.
Synaptics’ Q2 revenue mix was described as in line with expectations:
- 31% core IoT
- 53% enterprise and automotive
- 16% mobile touch
Core IoT revenue grew 53% year-over-year, “driven primarily by continued strength in our wireless connectivity products,” Rizvi said. Enterprise and automotive revenue was up modestly year-over-year and slightly ahead of expectations, while mobile touch revenue increased 3% year-over-year.
Edge AI and “Physical AI” focus highlighted at CES
Patel said Synaptics saw “meaningful engagement” with customers and partners at the Consumer Electronics Show in January, where it showcased new technologies and solutions across its portfolio. He framed a key industry theme as an accelerating shift toward “Physical and Edge AI,” as intelligence moves closer to devices—an evolution he said aligns with Synaptics’ strategy of delivering “power-efficient intelligent systems at the Edge.”
Among the examples discussed from CES were demonstrations involving Google’s Gemma 3 model running on Synaptics multi-model processors, as well as Wi-Fi sensing and Bluetooth channel sounding capabilities. Patel also cited a partner demonstration of a robotic hand using Synaptics processors, connectivity, and sensing products.
Robotics traction and humanoid sampling efforts
Patel said the company is seeing “early but meaningful traction” in robotics, including humanoid robots, where Synaptics aims to combine processing, connectivity, and sensing capabilities. He said Synaptics is sampling products with an “industry leader” building a lineup of advanced humanoids, including multiple touch controllers for tactile sensing and an Interface Bridge product for high-bandwidth data transport.
He emphasized the importance of touch sensing in humanoids for tasks such as sensing force, proximity, and surface characteristics, and said Synaptics’ touch controllers integrate ML/AI algorithms designed to enable dexterity, such as modulating grip force and distinguishing subtle pressure variations.
In response to an analyst question, Patel said Synaptics has begun sampling silicon for pilot builds of a humanoid at a major customer that has publicly committed to shipping pilots this year and going into production next year. He also referenced a CES demonstration by a partner that used “30-odd” touch controllers in the palm of a robotic arm, combined with Astra, a vision processor, and wireless connectivity.
Astra platform: design activity, roadmap, and margin commentary
Synaptics executives repeatedly pointed to the company’s Astra processor and microcontroller portfolio as central to its Edge AI strategy. Patel said Astra multimodal microprocessors are drawing interest due to open source architecture, developer-ready software, power efficiency, and AI capabilities enabled by Synaptics’ neural processing architecture developed in collaboration with Google.
During the quarter, Patel said the company secured a design with a Tier 1 consumer electronics OEM that selected an Astra microcontroller for vision capabilities enabling gesture-based control in smart TVs. He added that the Astra MCU supports additional vision modalities, including presence, object detection, and security.
On timing, Patel told analysts that Synaptics remains on track to see meaningful revenue contribution from Astra beginning in calendar 2027. Rizvi also said Astra is expected to be accretive to gross margin, a point Patel reiterated in the Q&A.
Patel provided an update on sampling and production timing, saying Astra microprocessor sampling began late in the prior quarter and has gone “ahead of our plans,” with production anticipated “end of this quarter, early part of next quarter.” He also described two additional products entering early sampling:
- An Astra MCU with connectivity integrating a low-power microcontroller, neural processing technology, and connectivity in a monolithic SoC, which Patel said supports Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and Thread.
- A standalone connectivity SoC supporting Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth, BLE, and Thread, intended to integrate into systems using non-Astra compute platforms.
Patel said Synaptics expects these products to begin contributing revenue in calendar 2027. He also noted a semi-custom MCU project for a major customer remained on track for tape-out in the early part of the next quarter, “more likely April.”
Discussing the Astra pipeline, Patel said it is growing quickly, with consumer applications ramping earlier than industrial due to design cycles and decision-making processes. He described the consumer pipeline as larger than industrial, but said industrial opportunities are “falling right behind.”
Guidance, supply commentary, and capital allocation
For fiscal Q3 2026, Synaptics guided to revenue of approximately $290 million at the midpoint (±$10 million). The company expects a revenue mix of roughly 32% core IoT, 54% enterprise and automotive, and 14% mobile touch.
Non-GAAP gross margin is expected to be 53.5% at the midpoint (±1%), with non-GAAP operating expenses of about $106 million (±$2 million). The company guided to non-GAAP EPS of $1.00 at the midpoint (±$0.15) on an estimated 40.6 million diluted shares. Rizvi said guidance is subject to macroeconomic and global trade and tariff-related uncertainty.
On supply and demand conditions, management said supply constraints have been improving, though challenges remain in certain areas. In Q&A, executives said Synaptics’ exposure in mobile is concentrated in the premium to high tier, which they characterized as more stable and less affected by memory-related supply concerns. Rizvi also said channel inventory, which the company monitors closely, remains “very lean.”
Rizvi said cash and cash equivalents ended Q2 at $437.4 million, down $22.5 million sequentially, reflecting $36.4 million in share repurchases during the quarter. Year-to-date through Q2, the company repurchased $43.6 million of shares. Operating cash flow was $30 million and capital expenditures were $11.6 million.
On inventory, Synaptics ended the quarter with $158 million of inventory, up $15 million from the prior quarter, with days of inventory rising to 101 days from 94. Rizvi said the increase reflected a strategic decision to purchase inventory slightly ahead of demand.
Looking beyond the March quarter, Rizvi said that historically the June quarter would be expected to be “up a bit” from March, adding that starting backlog for Q4 was higher than at the same point for Q3, while noting the company would continue to monitor bookings trends.
About Synaptics (NASDAQ:SYNA)
Synaptics Incorporated is a global developer and supplier of human interface solutions for computing, networking, communications, and entertainment devices. The company specializes in the design, development and integration of custom chips and software that enable intuitive, natural user interactions. Synaptics solutions support touch, display, audio and biometrics functions, facilitating seamless human-to-machine interfaces across a broad range of end markets.
Key product offerings include touch controllers for laptops and tablets, capacitive touchscreens and display drivers for mobile devices, fingerprint sensors and secure authentication modules, as well as advanced audio processing and voice enhancement technologies.
