Cerebras Shares Jump 17.77% After Hours as Company Raises Full-Year Revenue Outlook
Key Facts
Cerebras reported on November 12 results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2026, showing record core revenue of $230.9 million, up 70% year over year. Total revenue under generally accepted accounting principles rose to a record $210.8 million, up 55%. The company said the results reflected an expansion of its business, while Reuters reported that the stock rose 17.77% in extended trading after closing at $97.75, reaching $115.12. The stock had fallen 3.29% during the regular session on November 12. The move followed the company’s higher annual outlook and announcement of a cloud deal with Microsoft.
Cloud services stood out as a key growth driver, with core cloud and services revenue reaching $144.9 million in the third quarter, up 272% year over year. Under generally accepted accounting principles, cloud and other services revenue reached $141.9 million, up 265%. The quarterly comparison shows continued expansion in this business: core revenue rose from $127.7 million in the second quarter to $144.9 million in the third. Total core revenue also increased from $209.9 million to $230.9 million between the quarters. These figures point to a growing contribution from cloud computing services to the company’s growth during the period.
On profitability, core gross margin was 41% in the third quarter, while core operating margin remained negative at 14%. The company had reported a negative core operating margin of 16% in the second quarter, indicating an improvement between the two periods on the same measure. Cerebras says its core metrics do not conform to generally accepted accounting principles and exclude items including stock-based compensation and data center pass-through costs and revenue. Revenue growth therefore remains accompanied by an operating margin below breakeven, despite the improvement from the previous quarter. The company expects a core operating margin ranging from negative 1% to positive 1% in the fourth quarter.
Cerebras raised its 2026 core revenue outlook to a range of $940 million to $960 million, compared with a previous range of $880 million to $890 million, Reuters reported. Chief Financial Officer Bob Komin said the company exceeded its guidance across the board for the third consecutive quarter. He added that its high-speed AI inference pipeline grew by more than 10 times during the quarter. In its nearer-term outlook, the company is targeting core revenue of $310 million to $330 million in the fourth quarter. That outlook is paired with a core operating margin range of negative 1% to positive 1%.
The Microsoft deal is another focus in the expansion of the cloud business, but its commercial details have not yet been disclosed. Reuters said Cerebras signed a cloud deal with Microsoft, with details to be announced next year. The company’s statement had described the new customer as one of the top three hyperscale providers without naming it. Chief Executive Andrew Feldman said details of the opportunity and deal would be announced in the first half of 2027, and that related revenue was expected to begin then. Cerebras’s service is also scheduled to become available on Oracle’s cloud infrastructure in 2027.
Remaining performance obligations reflect the scale of contracted business, reaching $26.1 billion as of September 30, 2026, compared with $25.4 billion as of June 30. The company also said it had contracted for 700 megawatts of data center capacity to be delivered by the end of 2027. These commitments and contracted capacity place execution demands on the company as it works to meet demand for its services. Feldman said he expects the company’s revenue to triple in 2027. Those remain forecasts from the chief executive, while core operating margin was still negative in the third quarter.