ASML Holding NV published its third-quarter 2026 results on October 14, 2026, reporting total net sales of €11.7 billion and net income of €5.0 billion, and said its chipmaking tool supply as currently planned for 2027 and 2028 will not fully meet customer demand.
Third-Quarter 2026 Results
Total net sales for the quarter reached €11,662 million, with a gross margin of 57.5%, net income of €4,960 million, and basic earnings per share of €12.95. President and Chief Executive Officer Christophe Fouquet said the sales figure was a record, toward the high end of the company’s guidance, and reflected the strong execution of its ramp-up. In July, ASML had guided third-quarter net sales of between €11.0 billion and €12.0 billion with a gross margin between 55% and 57%.
ASML sold 113 new and 8 used lithography systems in the quarter. Installed Base Management sales, which the company defines as its net service and field option sales, came in at €3,289 million, above guidance. Chief Financial Officer Roger Dassen said in the company’s results video that the installed base figure was €400 million more than guided, driven by customer demand for productivity upgrades on their installed base, and that installed base revenue and the upgrade business largely drove the gross margin above guidance. Dassen said the quarter’s net income also included €500 million from the revaluation of the first tranche ASML bought from Mistral AI. Cash and cash equivalents and short-term investments stood at €12,735 million at the end of the quarter.
In the second quarter of 2026, ASML had reported net sales of €9,326 million, net income of €2,918 million, a gross margin of 54.0%, and 86 new lithography systems sold.
Demand Outlook Extends to 2029 and 2030
Fouquet said customers continue to increase their short- and medium-term equipment demand forecasts with ASML, driven primarily by their views on the size and duration of AI-related investments. He tied the expected 2027 and 2028 shortfall to order book momentum that has continued to increase quarter on quarter in 2026, and said that in light of customers’ demand visibility, some customers are expressing an interest in placing orders with ASML for 2029 and even 2030.
In the transcript of the video interview published with the results, Fouquet said customers report demand increasing in the short term and extending in time, and that they expect their own supply will not meet demand at least until 2028. He said they are accelerating their capacity plans and announcing new fabs, and that ASML’s discussions with customers are shifting beyond 2027. A lot of order intake is now for 2028, he said, with “some strong interest to already place orders for 2029 and sometimes even 2030.”
Fouquet said ASML is investigating ways to increase capacity for 2028 beyond the 30% increase it previously communicated, and continues to provide significant wafer capacity to customers through its productivity upgrade portfolio. In the video, he said it is becoming clear that adding 30% more capacity in 2027 and another 30% in 2028 will not allow ASML to meet customer demand, so the company is looking at ways to further extend capacity, especially in 2028 and beyond.
Capacity Plans and Tool Throughput
The 30% figures refer to the capacity plan ASML set out in its second-quarter results release on July 15, 2026, when the company said it planned to add 30% to its 2026 low-NA EUV capacity of around 65 systems for 2027 and was investigating a further 30% increase for 2028. The release laid out the same approach for DUV immersion capacity of around 130 systems: a planned 30% increase for 2027 and a further 30% under investigation for 2028.
Fouquet said ASML expects to ship about 65 low-NA EUV systems in 2026, which he described as a more than 50% increase compared to 2025, and plans to ship about the same number of DUV immersion tools as in 2025.
Dassen said ASML is aggressively developing upgrades so that customers can gain fast incremental capacity within their existing footprint. He said the NXE:3800F will move from 230 wafers per hour on current systems to 260 wafers per hour, introduced in small quantities in 2027 and helping customer capacity in 2028 and beyond, and that the critical immersion tools ASML ships in 2027 will show 330 wafers per hour.
Fouquet said the new YieldStar 550B overlay metrology system improves productivity by 60% and is ready for the 14-angstrom node in logic and the 1D node in DRAM. On High NA, he said TSMC has asked ASML to lead a consortium to bring a 12-inch reticle to the industry in the first half of the next decade, with all other major customers joining. He said TSMC confirmed high-volume manufacturing with High NA around 2030, Samsung plans High NA in high-volume manufacturing starting in 2028, and Intel continues to run the system in high-volume manufacturing with an increasing number of layers.
2026 Guidance and Capital Returns
For the fourth quarter of 2026, ASML expects total net sales between €14.2 billion and €15.2 billion at a gross margin around 57%, with R&D costs around €1.2 billion and SG&A costs around €0.4 billion. Dassen said the fourth-quarter Installed Base business is expected at €3.7 billion, again largely driven by upgrades. For full-year 2026, ASML expects total net sales between €44 billion and €45 billion with a gross margin around 56%; in July, it had expected full-year net sales between €43 billion and €45 billion with a gross margin between 54% and 56%.
Dassen said the 2026 outlook represents an overall sales increase of 36% compared to 2025, with the EUV business growing over 45%, the non-EUV business growing around 20%, and the Installed Base business growing around 50%, and with China representing around 20% of the total business. He said ASML has completed its value-based pricing conversations with key customers, with the effect partly visible in the course of 2027 and the full impact in 2028 and beyond.
ASML purchased around €4.1 billion worth of shares in the third quarter under its current 2026–2028 share buyback program. An interim dividend over 2026 of €1.88 per ordinary share will be made payable on November 4, 2026.
Fouquet and Dassen are scheduled to host a 60-minute investor call at 15:00 Central European Time on October 14, 2026, according to the company’s quarterly results page. ASML’s next Capital Markets Day will be held on June 10, 2027, where the company said it will update its longer-term views.
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