Conferencia de resultados del 3T 2026 de Corsair Gaming (CRSR): Eleva previsiones al dispararse un 43% los ingresos por memoria

Corsair Gaming (NASDAQ: CRSR) registró unos ingresos de 367 millones de dólares en el tercer trimestre de 2026, lo que supone un incremento interanual del 6% y se sitúa 17 millones de dólares por encima del límite superior de sus propias previsiones. El EBITDA ajustado aumentó un 38%, hasta los 22,4 millones de dólares, ya que la disciplina de gasto y la solidez en memoria y sistemas compensaron la continua debilidad en los componentes DIY.

Puntos clave

• Los ingresos del tercer trimestre de 2026 aumentaron un 6% interanual, hasta los 367 millones de dólares, mientras que el EBITDA ajustado creció un 38%, hasta los 22,4 millones de dólares.
• La pérdida neta GAAP se redujo a 2,4 millones de dólares frente a los 10,4 millones anteriores. El BPA diluido no GAAP se duplicó con creces, pasando de 0,06 a 0,13 dólares.
• Los ingresos del segmento de memoria alcanzaron un récord para un tercer trimestre de 167,3 millones de dólares, con un alza del 43%, respaldados por una sólida demanda, precios más elevados y ganancias secuenciales de cuota de mercado.
• Los ingresos del segmento de periféricos para jugadores y creadores aumentaron un 3%, hasta los 116,5 millones de dólares. Los retrasos logísticos, la transición de un centro de distribución y el aplazamiento de lanzamientos de productos trasladaron aproximadamente entre 6 y 8 millones de dólares de ingresos al cuarto trimestre.
• Corsair elevó sus previsiones para todo el año 2026 a unos ingresos de entre 1.456 y 1.486 millones de dólares y un EBITDA ajustado de entre 127 y 131 millones de dólares.
• La dirección prevé que los ingresos por periféricos en el cuarto trimestre crezcan a un ritmo de doble dígito, pero anticipa un EBITDA ajustado inferior en términos interanuales, debido principalmente a la normalización del margen bruto en memoria.

Principales datos financieros

En los primeros nueve meses de 2026, los ingresos se mantuvieron prácticamente estables en 1.036 millones de dólares. El beneficio bruto aumentó un 13%, hasta los 318,1 millones de dólares, el margen bruto se amplió del 27,2% al 30,7% y el EBITDA ajustado prácticamente se duplicó, pasando de 47 a 89 millones de dólares.

Evolución comercial y operativa

Componentes y sistemas de gaming

Los ingresos del segmento aumentaron un 7%, hasta los 250,5 millones de dólares. El beneficio bruto creció un 8%, hasta los 52,8 millones de dólares, mientras que el margen bruto mejoró del 20,9% al 21,1%.

La memoria fue el principal motor de crecimiento. Los ingresos aumentaron un 43%, hasta los 167,3 millones de dólares, impulsados por una mayor demanda, precios de venta más altos y ganancias secuenciales de cuota de mercado. Corsair incrementó su inventario de memoria en 37 millones de dólares durante el trimestre para respaldar la demanda navideña prevista. La dirección afirmó sentirse cómoda con la disponibilidad de suministro para los próximos cuatro a cinco meses, aunque la capacidad de memoria continúa siendo limitada y los precios siguen elevados.

Los sistemas premontados crecieron en todas las categorías a medida que los clientes actualizaban sus equipos para videojuegos avanzados y computación de IA. Por el contrario, los elevados precios de la memoria continuaron retrasando el montaje de ordenadores DIY. La dirección calificó esta demanda como aplazada en lugar de perdida.

Las estaciones de trabajo Corsair Pro AI continuaron ganando terreno, pero la dirección señaló que este negocio aún se encuentra en una fase inicial y afronta escasez de CPUs, GPUs y memoria. Se espera una aportación de ingresos más significativa en la última parte de 2027 y en adelante, condicionada a que se normalice la disponibilidad de semiconductores.

Periféricos para jugadores y creadores

Los ingresos aumentaron un 3%, hasta los 116,5 millones de dólares. El beneficio bruto subió un 2%, situándose en 45 millones de dólares, mientras que el margen bruto se redujo del 39,3% al 38,7%.

El crecimiento se vio limitado por retrasos logísticos, la transición completada del centro de distribución y lanzamientos de productos que se trasladaron a principios del cuarto trimestre. Corsair cerró el tercer trimestre con una cartera de pedidos pendientes de periféricos que aumentó entre 6 y 7 millones de dólares de forma secuencial, mientras que la introducción de nuevos productos por valor de entre 1 y 2 millones de dólares adicionales se pospuso al cuarto trimestre.

La dirección prevé que el crecimiento del cuarto trimestre esté liderado por Sim Racing, Elgato y SCUF. Corsair también registró mayores reservas asociadas a la demanda prevista en torno al próximo lanzamiento de GTA 6, en particular para los mandos de SCUF y los productos de Elgato.

La empresa espera empezar a percibir los beneficios de la integración de Fanatec y Trak Racer en el cuarto trimestre. La aportación de Trak Racer en el tercer trimestre no fue significativa. Se prevé que los envíos de su moto de simulación comiencen en el primer trimestre de 2027, y la dirección calificó el interés en las reservas previas como muy sólido.

Elgato Marketplace sumó más de 1 millón de cuentas en términos interanuales. Corsair también lanzó Wave Go, su primer micrófono inalámbrico con cancelación de ruido, y VOXARA, que combina un micrófono de gaming de Corsair con el software Wave Link de Elgato. Las ventas directas al consumidor han aumentado desde aproximadamente el 13% de la composición de ingresos hasta casi el 20%, según la dirección.

Previsiones de la dirección

El punto medio de las previsiones de ingresos para todo el año aumentó en aproximadamente 36 millones de dólares respecto al rango previo de entre 1.400 y 1.470 millones de dólares. El punto medio del EBITDA ajustado se incrementó en 3 millones de dólares en comparación con el rango anterior de entre 121 y 131 millones de dólares.

La dirección prevé un crecimiento interanual de doble dígito en el segmento de periféricos para jugadores y creadores durante el cuarto trimestre, respaldado por nuevos productos, la conversión de la cartera de pedidos y los avances en la venta directa al consumidor. La previsión de BPA diluido contempla aproximadamente 112 millones de acciones diluidas.

Se prevé que el suministro de memoria siga siendo adecuado, pero Corsair pronostica un margen bruto de la memoria en el cuarto trimestre de aproximadamente entre el 18% y el 20%, frente a cerca del 35% registrado un año antes. La dirección atribuyó el margen del ejercicio anterior a subidas de precios inusualmente rápidas antes del aumento de los costes de inventario, y señaló que el rango para el cuarto trimestre de 2026 se mantiene por encima de la media histórica de la empresa, situada en torno al 15%.

Riesgos y aspectos a vigilar

• Los elevados precios de la memoria siguen retrasando el montaje de ordenadores DIY, mientras que el suministro de memoria se mantiene por debajo de la demanda.
• Se prevé que el EBITDA ajustado del cuarto trimestre disminuya en términos interanuales, principalmente debido a que el margen bruto de la memoria se está normalizando tras el nivel inusualmente alto del año anterior.
• El crecimiento de las estaciones de trabajo de IA se ve limitado por la escasez generalizada en el mercado de CPUs, GPUs y memoria.
• El déficit en los ingresos de periféricos en el tercer trimestre reflejó retrasos logísticos, la transición puntual de un centro de distribución y el aplazamiento de lanzamientos de productos, lo que incrementa la importancia de la ejecución y de la conversión de la cartera de pedidos en el cuarto trimestre.
• El inventario aumentó 80 millones de dólares de forma secuencial, hasta los 344,6 millones de dólares, lo que incluye la acumulación planificada de memoria y aproximadamente 13 millones de dólares añadidos a través de Trak Racer.

Puntos destacados de la sesión de preguntas y respuestas con analistas

• Calendario de periféricos: La dirección cuantificó el traslado imprevisto de ingresos del tercer trimestre en aproximadamente entre 6 y 8 millones de dólares. Afirmó que el problema estuvo relacionado con la ejecución y la logística, y no con un deterioro de la demanda de los clientes finales.
• Demanda navideña: Corsair afirmó que el inventario del canal se encontraba en un nivel cómodo y que los pedidos estaban llegando según lo previsto antes del Black Friday y el Cyber Monday. Algunos socios del canal evolucionaban por delante de lo previsto.
• Suministro de memoria: La dirección expresó su confianza en seguir recibiendo asignaciones gracias a la ejecución de la cadena de suministro de Corsair, citando el crecimiento del 43% en los ingresos por memoria y el aumento de 37 millones de dólares en el inventario.
• Rentabilidad de la memoria: La dirección prevé escasa variación a corto plazo en torno al rango de margen bruto previsto para el cuarto trimestre, de entre el 18% y el 20%, con un ligero sesgo a la baja a medida que se modera el ritmo de aumento de los precios de la memoria.
• Estrategia de venta directa al consumidor: La proporción de ingresos procedentes de la venta directa al consumidor ha pasado de aproximadamente el 13% a casi el 20%, y la dirección prevé seguir ampliándola.
• Catalizadores para 2027: La dirección destacó el lanzamiento de nuevos productos, la moto de simulación de Trak Racer, la expansión del ecosistema de Elgato y la demanda asociada a GTA 6 como posibles vientos de cola para las ventas de gaming, al tiempo que señaló la incertidumbre en torno a la fecha de lanzamiento de cualquier versión de GTA 6 para PC.

Transcripción completa de la conferencia de resultados

Transcripción completa de la conferencia de resultados

Comentarios de la dirección

Operator

Good afternoon, and welcome to the Corsair Gaming's Third Quarter 2026 Earnings Conference Call. [Operator Instructions] I would now like to turn the call over to David Pasquale with Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

David Pasquale

Thank you, operator. Good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for joining us today.

With me on the call are Thi La, our Chief Executive Officer; and Gordon Mattingly, our Chief Financial Officer. Before we begin, I'd like to remind you that today's discussion contains forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, our guidance for the fourth quarter and full year 2026, potential future growth in certain product categories and other statements that are not historical in nature, are predictive in nature or depend upon or refer to future events or conditions.

These forward-looking statements are based on our current assumptions and expectations. Actual results could differ materially. Please refer to the risk factors in our most recent annual report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC, our subsequent SEC filings and today's earnings press release for a full discussion of the factors that could cause our actual results to differ.

We undertake no obligation to update these forward-looking statements. Additionally, we will discuss certain non-GAAP financial measures today. Definitions and reconciliations to the most comparable GAAP measures are included in our earnings press release and the investor presentation posted to our Investor Relations website at ir.corsair.com. With that, I'd like to now turn the call over to Corsair's CEO, Thi La. Thi, please go ahead.

Thi La

Thank you, David, and good afternoon, everyone. We delivered third quarter results above the high end of our guidance in a dynamic market.

Revenue was $367 million, up 6% from a year ago. Operating expenses increased by less than $1 million year-over-year, including the recently acquired Trak Racer, and decreased slightly excluding it.

That discipline, along with our diversified portfolio helped adjusted EBITDA grow 38% to $22.4 million. Non-GAAP earnings per share was $0.13, more than double the $0.06 a year ago. Memory led the quarter, while the built systems grew in every category.

Together, they more than offset continued industry-wide weakness in DIY components. We also maintained a disciplined approach to managing our balance sheet. We ended the quarter with $136.2 million in cash and restricted cash, which is nearly double the year ago cash balance. That is after funding the Trak Racer acquisition and partnership investments and strategically building inventory to support expected holiday season demand.

Let me now give you color on our segments. I will start with the Gaming Components and Systems segment where revenue grew 7%, led by memory. Memory revenue was a record for third quarter at $167.3 million, up 43% year-over-year.

Demand was strong. Prices were higher and we gained market share sequentially. Our supply chain execution made that possible. It reflects our operational know-how and the strength of our product portfolio.

During the quarter, we built memory inventory by $37 million. We did that deliberately to be well positioned for the demand we expect in the fourth quarter. We feel good about our inventory position heading into the holiday season.

Moving on to prebuilt systems. We benefited from growth across all categories. Consumers are upgrading their platforms. They want to run more advanced games and AI compute. DIY components remain soft. Higher memory prices continue to delay builds. We believe that demand is deferred, not lost.

AI workstations under Corsair Pro family continue to gain momentum since their introduction in the second half of last year. These customers want local computing, protection of their data and lower cloud token consumption.

The enhanced security and lower token consumption cost of local computing are a big focus for businesses of all sizes. We expect these catalysts to help drive Corsair demand as we move forward.

To calibrate expectations, please note that the business is still in its early phase and is dealing with market-wide CPU, GPU and memory shortages. We expect a more meaningful revenue contribution in the latter part of 2027 and beyond when semiconductor availability normalizes.

Now turning to Gamer and Creator Peripherals segment. Revenue grew 3% to $116.5 million. Growth in the quarter was affected by timing. Several new product launches moved from the third quarter into the beginning of the fourth, logistics delays and the hub transition also led to a higher-than-planned backlog at quarter end.

Those products are now arriving. Our hub transition is completed, and we entered the fourth quarter with a healthy backlog. Accordingly, we expect double-digit growth in peripherals in the fourth quarter. Momentum also built ahead of the upcoming GTA 6 launch. We are seeing console gaming hardware demand reflected in sales of both SCUF controllers and Elgato products.

We expect more than that through the holiday season based on pent-up demand for the Evergreen GTA franchise. The SCUF Omega licensed controller also gives us broader premium offering for PlayStation 5. With Fanatec and Trak Racer, we can now outfit a sim Racer's complete setup. Fanatec supplies electronics, Trak Racer adds cockpits, seats and accessories, and we expect to begin seeing the benefit of integration in Q4.

Both of our brands have direct-to-consumer businesses, which will help us access even more sim drivers. At October SimRacing Expo, Fanatec and Trak Racer showed their products together and customers responded well.

Fanatec launched Podium Pedals Sport, which brings its premium pedal technology to a wider group of racers. Trak Racer also showed its sim motorbike, which we expect to ship in the first quarter of 2027. It is a new category for us. It opens another popular sim sport to esports enthusiasts and gives our customer a new way to race.

We were also very active on new product introductions, which we expect will drive growth over the coming quarters. We launched PureVector in its SABRE v3 PRO mouse in October. This is a very exciting technology with a lot of potential. Developed with our partner, Aimlabs, on a patented algorithm and billions of proprietary data points, PureVector personalizes mouse sensitivity to each player's own biomechanics.

In testing, it improved accuracy and aim speed by up to 33%. Pro players are already putting it to the test. Raptor of BNK FEARX recently played on PureVector at the Demacia Cup Global Invitational. This team went on to win the event and Raptor was also named MVP.

Elgato separately entered mobile streaming and recording in October with the introduction of Wave Go. It's our first noise-canceling wireless microphone, and it converts between clip-on and handheld use, so creators get Elgato audio quality away from their desk.

Social apps and short-form video have made remote recording the default for a growing share of creators. Wave Go gives us a strong product to win share in this important growth market. Reflecting our momentum, Elgato Marketplace added more than 1 million new accounts year-over-year.

New hardware launches brought many of those users in, and the wider Corsair ecosystem is pulling more of them onto the platform. Makers in our community are also using AI tools to ship digital products at an accelerating pace.

This is the important flywheel model we have discussed in prior quarters and demonstrates both our progress and long-term potential for Corsair. We are also continuing to connect capabilities across our brands.

You will recall, we outlined this as a priority a few quarters back, and we continue to execute on this initiative. In September, we launched VOXARA. It pairs a premium Corsair USB RGB gaming microphone with Elgato's Wave Link software.

This is a visually stunning device with high fidelity performance to match. Corsair's gamers get more control over their audio and Elgato software reaches a wider audience. Looking ahead, given the strong demand and catalysts I just detailed, we are raising our full year outlook.

The midpoint of our revenue guidance is increasing $36 million and the midpoint of adjusted EBITDA is moving up $3 million. Gordon will take you through the details. For the fourth quarter, we expect double-digit growth in gaming peripherals and creator segment.

In Components and Systems, we expect DIY demand to stay soft while memory prices remain high. We believe memory supply should remain adequate, and we expect to gain further share. Fourth quarter's adjusted EBITDA is anticipated to be below last year, mainly because we expect memory gross margin to return to a more normal level, but still above our historical average.

As you will recall, last year's fourth quarter memory gross margin was unusually high. Memory prices rose very quickly ahead of inventory cost, resulting in rapid margin expansion.

Overall, our priorities remain focused on expanding in Sim Racing, extending the Elgato and Stream Deck ecosystem, expanding Corsair Pro product lines, and deepening our direct-to-consumer relationships.

We will also consider acquisitions that add to our existing businesses, provided the valuation, earnings contribution and integration requirements fit our model. With that, I will turn it over to Gordon to take you through the financials. Gordon?

Gordon Mattingly

Thank you, Thi, and good afternoon, everyone. Third quarter revenue grew 6% year-over-year to $367 million, gross profit grew 5% and adjusted EBITDA grew 38% to $22.4 million.

We held expense growth below gross profit growth, which is what drove that operating leverage, and we narrowed our GAAP net loss to $2.4 million, an $8 million improvement. We also exceeded the high end of our guidance for revenue, adjusted EBITDA and non-GAAP earnings per share. As Thi noted, we are raising our full year outlook, and we used our cash position to build inventory ahead of our seasonally strongest fourth quarter.

We enter Q4 with confidence, and I'll now walk you through the details. Revenue for the third quarter was $367 million, up 6% year-over-year and $17 million above the high end of our guidance range of $320 million to $350 million. Gross profit increased 5% year-over-year to $97.8 million.

Gross margin was 26.7% compared with 26.9% a year ago. GAAP operating loss narrowed to $1.6 million from $5.6 million a year ago. GAAP net loss narrowed to $2.4 million from $10.4 million in the prior year quarter. GAAP diluted loss per share was $0.02 compared with a loss of $0.09 a year ago.

Adjusted EBITDA increased 38% to $22.4 million from $16.2 million a year ago, and adjusted EBITDA margin expanded to 6.1% from 4.7%. Non-GAAP diluted EPS increased to $0.13 from $0.06.

Both adjusted EBITDA and non-GAAP diluted EPS exceeded the high end of our guided ranges of $21 million and $0.12, respectively. For the first 9 months of 2026, while revenue was essentially flat at $1.036 billion, gross profit grew 13% to $318.1 million. Gross margin improved to 30.7% from 27.2% and adjusted EBITDA nearly doubled to $89 million from $47 million.

Turning to our segment performance. Gaming Components and Systems revenue grew 7% to $250.5 million. Gross profit increased 8% to $52.8 million, and gross margin rose to 21.1% from 20.9%. Memory revenue grew 43% to $167.3 million on strong demand, higher selling prices and sequential share gains supported by our supply chain execution.

Systems grew across every category. Together, these businesses more than offset continued market weakness in DIY builds and stand-alone components. Gamer and creator peripherals revenue grew 3% year-over-year to $116.5 million. Timing held back growth in the quarter as several new product introductions shifted into the fourth quarter. Logistics delays and the hub transition also led to a higher-than-planned backlog at quarter end.

Gross profit increased 2% to $45 million and gross margin was 38.7% compared with 39.3% a year ago. With those product launches now arriving and the backlog we carried out of the quarter, we expect double-digit growth in the fourth quarter.

Operating expenses were $99.5 million, up less than $1 million from $98.7 million a year ago. Excluding the recently acquired Trak Racer, operating expenses decreased slightly year-over-year. Because gross profit grew $4.7 million ahead of expense growth, we narrowed our GAAP operating loss by $4 million.

As Thi noted, we built inventory ahead of our seasonally strongest fourth quarter. Inventory grew $80 million sequentially to $344.6 million, including a $37 million increase in memory and approximately $13 million added through Trak Racer.

We will continue to manage inventory, collections and vendor terms closely. We ended the quarter with cash and restricted cash of $136.2 million, up $70.2 million year-over-year. That is down $57.6 million from $193.9 million at the end of the second quarter.

The decline reflects approximately $37 million used for the M&A transactions that closed during the quarter and our inventory build, partly offset by cash from operations and higher payables. Our first priority remains funding growth at attractive returns, including smaller acquisitions that fit our existing businesses.

We will also remain opportunistic on share repurchases and keep our balance sheet flexible. Now turning to our outlook. For the fourth quarter of 2026, we expect net revenue of $420 million to $450 million, adjusted EBITDA of $38 million to $42 million and non-GAAP diluted EPS of $0.26 to $0.31.

The fourth quarter outlook assumes double-digit year-over-year growth in gamer and creator peripherals, led by Sim Racing, Elgato and SCUF and supported by new product launches and the backlog we carried out of the third quarter.

We expect a higher margin mix and continued progress in direct-to-consumer sales to support consolidated gross margin. Gaming Components and Systems is expected to remain pressured by softness in DIY PC demand as elevated memory prices continue to delay builds across the industry.

Memory supply availability is expected to remain adequate. On memory margin, last year's fourth quarter was unusually high at about 35% due to average selling prices rising rapidly.

We expect memory gross margin of approximately 18% to 20% this year, which is still above our historical average. That decline is a primary factor in the estimated year-over-year change in fourth quarter adjusted EBITDA. The fourth quarter outlook for non-GAAP diluted EPS assumes approximately 112 million diluted shares outstanding.

For the full year 2026, we are raising our outlook. We now expect net revenue of $1.456 billion to $1.486 billion, adjusted EBITDA of $127 million to $131 million and non-GAAP diluted EPS of $0.89 to $0.94 compared with $0.85 to $0.94 previously.

The midpoint of our full year net revenue outlook is up approximately $36 million compared with our prior guidance range of $1.4 billion to $1.47 billion. The midpoint of our adjusted EBITDA outlook is up $3 million compared with our prior range of $121 million to $131 million.

To summarize, we again delivered results above expectations, narrowed our GAAP net loss and grew adjusted EBITDA 38% on revenue growth of 6%, a clear demonstration of our operating leverage. Our diversified product portfolio underpins that performance and combined with our strong cash position, it gives us the confidence to raise our full year outlook.

We remain focused on disciplined expense and working capital management and converting earnings into cash. Thank you for joining us today. Operator, we're ready to open the line for questions.

Operator

[Operator Instructions] Our first question is from Sean McGowan with ROTH Capital Partners.

Preguntas y respuestas

Sean McGowan

The first one is about the shift in revenue that you described. So how much of the timing shift was expected versus unexpected? And what specific products were affected by the logistics delays and hub transition? Was it general or did it affect a couple of products in particular?

Gordon Mattingly

Sean, it's Gordon here. Great to speak to you. Thanks for the question. The unexpected amount of the miss is around about probably $6 million to $8 million.

We exited Q3 with specifically peripherals-related backlog elevated by $6 million to $7 million sequentially. And that was associated with the logistics delays and the onetime hub transition. The hub transition is now complete.

The other thing on top of that was about $1 million to $2 million of new product introduction delays. It was not specific to any particular peripherals category.

It was kind of across the board, but that's the magnitude of it. And obviously, if you do the math, we guided double-digit peripherals growth year-over-year for Q3. And if you add back the kind of $6 million to $8 million I just mentioned, we would have been a double-digit growth. So it gives us confidence heading into Q4.

Sean McGowan

Right. And my follow-up is, can you talk a little bit about how the Trak Racer integration is going?

Thi La

Yes. The Trak Racer integration is going quite well. This is Thi. We are expecting to see contribution from the integration starting from Q4. Q3 contribution was nonmaterial, and we're pleased with the progress that we're making from the Trak Racer side, and we feel like right now, we're on track, no [indiscernible] Intended. So Q4 is looking...

Operator

Our next question is from Katherine Murphy with Goldman Sachs.

Katherine Campagna

Following up on your outlook for double-digit growth in the gamer and peripherals category for next quarter.

You just provided some helpful details thinking about some of the moving parts as we head into 4Q and the elevated backlog. But my question is, excluding some of those timing impacts, is there any change in your outlook or your expectations from an underlying demand perspective, thinking specifically around the environment or peripherals opportunity related to GTA 6 as well as some of these combined Sim Racing benefits that you highlighted on the call?

Gordon Mattingly

I'll start out and then hand it over to Thi. But no, nothing changed in our outlook of the underlying because we had the orders.

We had the backlog at the end of Q3. It was $6 million to $7 million more than we actually recognized in revenue. And on top of that, we had, as mentioned, $1 million to $2 million of NPI on top of that, that slipped into Q4.

So none of that is demand -- end customer demand related. That's more internal execution, coupled with some exogenous factors that we actually couldn't control. So nothing related to underlying consumer demand.

Thi La

I think that we did see an extended lead time from some of the logistic partners, and we made the adjustment for it.

So if we looked at Q4 right now, towards the end of Q3, we already saw elevated booking for GTA 6 related demand, meaning our console part of the business, such as SCUF controllers, PS5, Xbox, as well as the Elgato product family is already seeing some benefit from that. And we are expecting Q4, we will see more benefit from it.

Katherine Campagna

Okay. And just as a quick follow-up, I recognize that it's still only the heading into the calendar fourth quarter, but any preliminary thoughts you could share just on the demand outlook for the broader gamer and creator peripherals category as we look to '27, especially as you look to enter new categories like sim motorbike and continue to invest behind Elgato with the 1 million new adds to the platform this quarter.

Thi La

So I would say, if we look at where we are in terms of Q4 booking pace, it's on target. In a way, some of the numbers are even a little bit better than target.

We have some really nice product launch coming in Q1, and those are on preorder, for example, the motorbike, the preorder and the excitement around that is strong. And it's the high ASP product. We're just happy to see that there is still an appetite for a lot of enthusiasts to embrace new product categories. So from a GTA 6 and then if you look at the rumble around whether or not a PC version is becoming available earlier than planned. Some of the site comments were even talking about Q1 being available in terms of a PC version.

So all these things are pretty positive momentum. Whether or not that will come earlier than later is yet to be seen. But for us, 2027 has a lot of really good tailwind in order to drive more gaming sales.

Operator

Our next question is from Aaron Lee with Macquarie.

Aaron Lee

So you mentioned you're heading into 4Q with confidence. As we think about the holiday season, can you just provide some more detail on what you're seeing with channel inventory promotions and the competitive environment, please?

Thi La

With regards to our channel inventory, we would say that we're comfortable with where we are. So we're coming into October, looking at November as the Black Friday, Cyber Monday, channel partners are definitely feeling pretty optimistic about the sales coming up, and we're seeing order coming through as expected.

As I mentioned, if not, some of the channel partners are even moving ahead with a more positive momentum than planned. So right now, again, there's no really key concerns from our side with regards to holiday sales.

Aaron Lee

Okay. Great. And then just on the memory picture, nice to see you were able to increase your inventory there. Can you just talk about looking ahead, your confidence levels in continuing to get allocation from your partners going forward, just given all the moving pieces in that space?

Thi La

Yes. So we believe that we have demonstrated after so many quarters now in 2026 that we're able to manage the availability of memory chips and run our business in a way that we can stay ahead of the market and even demonstrated growth in Q3.

And for the holiday season, with the additional inventory that we invested in, we feel pretty good about the next 4 to 5 months and continue to use the same methodology to manage 2027. We still see that semiconductor, especially memory capacity to be short. There is really no change in pricing.

And you also heard that the big 4 are still staying with the same CapEx. So there is no shift in terms of the supply-demand situation on memory, right? Supply is still behind demand.

And if we look at some of the data center consumption and growth, they're all seeing triple-digit growth in terms of capacity consumption. So for us, the memory chip price will continue to be elevated. And we will continue to use the same operational excellence that we have on DRAM operation, something that we've been practicing and been driving for the past 30 years, we are not concerned that we cannot stay ahead of that game.

Gordon Mattingly

And just to -- Aaron, thanks for the question. This is Gordon. Just to add to that. We feel that growing memory 43% year-over-year in the quarter and growing the ending inventory by $37 million speaks pretty loudly to our ability to execute in this area.

Operator

Our next question is from Drew Crum with B. Riley.

Andrew Crum

Maybe one for Thi and one for Gordon. Thi, last year, when you started as CEO, you outlined a list of strategic priorities, one being channel expansion in underserved markets, including Asia.

I peeked at the Q and that business was up 30% year-on-year. Can you talk about what has worked thus far and where you see opportunities for further growth with the business? And then, Gordon, just on the Performance Memory gross margin, it's moved around quite a bit. I know you and I have discussed this in the past. There are several puts and takes here. But the 18% to 20% range that you shared for 4Q is above the historical trend. Is that where we should expect it to kind of settle out at going forward? Or is it going to continue to be volatile going forward?

Thi La

Drew, so with regards to your question on what is working, as outlined when I stepped into the role, we are focusing on controlling OpEx and improving cash flow and drive growth in the growth area, also really focusing on growing direct-to-consumers.

And since then, we've done a really good job from our perspective in terms of growing our cash flow, as you can see in the numbers. And we also are really controlling OpEx so that any additional revenue that we generated or margin that we generated would be additive and again, we demonstrated that the OpEx number is well under control even with acquisition.

We also continue to expand our direct-to-consumer business. We went from roughly 13% as a mix to now almost 20%, and our plan is to continue to grow that. So I think everything is working out the way we intended. The gaming segment is growing as well as the M&A activities is going to add to that in Q4 as well as 2027 and beyond.

And we will continue to investigate opportunities to either grow organically or bolt-on additional companies to service our business better. And I'm going to hand over to Gordon to talk about your other question.

Gordon Mattingly

Thanks, Thi. Yes. On the memory gross margin, we've always said that when prices are rising, we will benefit in terms of the gross margin. We saw that probably most acutely a year ago in Q4, where we saw roughly [ 67% ] increase in the price -- 67% increase in the price from the beginning of Q4 last year to the end, peaking out at kind of a 60% price range in a very short period of time towards the end of November last year.

Accordingly, we saw roughly 35% gross margin on memory in Q4 a year ago. And obviously, you've seen the recent trend, Q1 was still in the 30s, Q2 in mid-20s, Q3 most recently, 21.3%.

The guide for Q4, 18% to 20%. I think that's realistic for Q4 in terms of the long-term margin profile and where it's going to shake out in the kind of short to medium term. I don't think there's going to be a lot of movement.

I think it's probably more trended on the slight downside to the upside just because that speed of price changes slowed down somewhat on the memory side. But our long-term average is kind of mid-teens. We're guiding 18% to 20% for Q4. So we're kind of getting back to more normalized margin levels at this point. But I think Thi has got some additional color she can add to that.

Thi La

Yes. And I would say that we already mentioned as of last Q4, the acceleration was not norm because we are seeing as much as 60% to 70% ASP acceleration within the same quarter.

And naturally, when you have inventory in the quarter, you're going to benefit a lot more than not. And as that inventory normalizes, we now see what we consider as, I would say, an elevated inventory comparing to before, but it's something that is more sustainable at this time.

And the number that we forecasted for the full year since last year is basically coming in as what we said. So even if maybe the number seems like it's changing, but it was not unexpected.

Operator

[Operator Instructions] We have reached the end of the question-and-answer session. I would like to turn the floor back over to Thi La for closing comments. Please proceed.

Thi La

Thank you for joining us today's call and on your continued support. We entered the important holiday season with new products arriving in a clear plan. We have an opportunity to build on our Q3 results and our attention is on executing our growth strategy.

We look forward to sharing our progress when we report our fourth quarter results. Have a good evening, everyone.

Operator

This now concludes today's teleconference. You may now disconnect.