MaxLinear Inc (MXL)
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MaxLinear (Nasdaq: MXL) designs the communications chips that push data through broadband routers, 5G networks and the fiber-optic arteries of AI data centers. Exactly that optical business has driven the stock up more than fivefold within twelve months, and the name lights up green in 24 of our scanners. Yet revenue still sits below half of the 2022 boom, MaxLinear writes deeply red numbers under U.S. accounting rules (GAAP), cash keeps shrinking — and above it all hangs a Silicon Motion arbitration for which not a single dollar of reserve sits on the balance sheet. We read the annual report (10-K) and the quarterly report (10-Q). Not investment advice — just the sober question of whether a price can heal a company's wounds before the filings do.
Appears in These Scanners
This stock currently matches 24 of our scanner strategies — each hit links to the scanner.
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Basics
Performance
Valuation
Profitability
Balance Sheet & Safety
Growth
Quality & Screener
AI Rating
Sells AIMaxLinear ist ein fabless Halbleiter-Designer für Kommunikations-SoCs (Breitband, Konnektivität, Infrastruktur/Optik, Industrie). Der Geschäftsbericht (10-K) 2025 beschreibt eigene Produkte, die ausdrücklich in Systemen der Künstlichen Intelligenz eingesetzt werden und dafür patentierte Verfahren des maschinellen Lernens nutzen (Item 1 Business). Der mit Abstand am schnellsten wachsende Umsatzblock ist das optische Rechenzentrumsgeschäft (Segment Infrastructure, Q1 2026 rund 46 Prozent des Umsatzes): MaxLinear verkauft die optischen Transceiver-/PHY-Chips, die die Server in KI-Rechenzentren verbinden. Im Quartals-8-K vom 23.04.2026 fuehrt das Unternehmen den aktuellen Umsatzsprung direkt auf KI zurueck: der Anstieg sei vor allem durch die Produktionshochlaeufe der optischen Rechenzentrums-Produkte bei mehreren Hyperscale-Kunden ueber Scale-up- und Scale-out-KI-Plattformen getrieben. Damit ist KI-getriebene Infrastruktur-Nachfrage eine dokumentierte, aktuell tragende Umsatzquelle — nach dem Kriterienkatalog (Vorrang-Regel: verkauft vor bedroht/nutzt/neutral) faellt MaxLinear damit in die Kategorie verkauft, konsistent mit vergleichbaren Optik-fuer-KI-Zulieferern (z. B. AAOI). Die Erwaehnungen des EU-AI-Acts im Risikoteil sind Compliance-Boilerplate und kein eigenstaendiges Bedroht-Signal.
View the full file — quotes, sources, reviewed filings
„We have further expanded our product offerings to include Wi-Fi, ethernet and broadband gateway processor SoCs and intellectual property that utilizes patented machine learning techniques to improve signal integrity and power efficiency in SoCs, ASICs, and field-programmable gate arrays, or FPGAs, used in next-generation communication and artificial intelligence systems."
Wir haben unser Produktangebot um Wi-Fi-, Ethernet- und Breitband-Gateway-Prozessor-SoCs sowie geistiges Eigentum erweitert, das patentierte Verfahren des maschinellen Lernens nutzt, um Signalintegritaet und Energieeffizienz in SoCs, ASICs und FPGAs zu verbessern, die in Kommunikations- und Systemen der Kuenstlichen Intelligenz der naechsten Generation eingesetzt werden.
„The explosive emergence of artificial intelligence, or AI, platforms and services such as OpenAI, Copilot, Anthropic Claude, and Google Gemini, which broadly amplify human ability to harness high-performance computing within the data center."
Das explosionsartige Aufkommen von Plattformen und Diensten der Kuenstlichen Intelligenz (KI) wie OpenAI, Copilot, Anthropic Claude und Google Gemini, die die Faehigkeit des Menschen, Hochleistungsrechnen im Rechenzentrum zu nutzen, breit verstaerken.
„This was driven primarily by strong execution and production ramps of our optical data center products at multiple hyperscale customers across scale-up and scale-out AI platforms."
Dies wurde vor allem durch die starke Umsetzung und die Produktionshochlaeufe unserer optischen Rechenzentrums-Produkte bei mehreren Hyperscale-Kunden ueber Scale-up- und Scale-out-KI-Plattformen hinweg getrieben.
Filings Reviewed: 10-Q 2026-04-23 · 10-Q 2025-10-23 · 10-Q 2025-07-23 · 10-Q 2025-04-23 · 10-K 2026-01-29 · 10-K 2025-01-29 · 8-K 2026-04-23
Rated on July 10, 2026 · How the Rating Is Built
Highlighted are things our editorial team noticed: green = stands out as strong, red = deserves a closer look. No single metric is a verdict on its own — always read it in context.
Quarterly Figures
| Quarter | EPS (Earnings Per Share) | EPS YoY (%) | Sales ($M) | Sales YoY (%) | Net Margin (%) | OCF ($M) | FCF ($M) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024: Q4 | -0.68 | – | 92 | -26.50 | -62.80 | -28 | -30 |
| 2025: Q1 | -0.58 | – | 96 | 0.70 | -51.80 | -11 | -13 |
| 2025: Q2 | -0.31 | – | 109 | 18.30 | -24.40 | 11 | 9 |
| 2025: Q3 | -0.52 | – | 127 | 55.90 | -36.00 | 10 | 4 |
| 2025: Q4 | -0.17 | – | 136 | 48.00 | -10.90 | 10 | 7 |
| 2026: Q1 | -0.52 | – | 137 | 43.00 | -32.90 | -9 | -10 |
- EPS (Earnings Per Share):
- Quarterly profit divided by the total share count — how much of the profit works out to a single share.
- YoY (Year over Year):
- Change versus the same quarter a year ago — this is how you compare without seasonal distortion (e.g. the holiday shopping season).
- Sales:
- All revenue for the quarter, before any costs are deducted — the top line of the income statement.
- Net Margin:
- What percentage of sales is left over as profit in the end. Negative means the company is posting a loss.
- OCF (Operating Cash Flow):
- The cash that actually flows into the till from the core business during the quarter — harder to dress up than book profit.
- FCF (Free Cash Flow):
- Operating cash flow minus capital expenditures — the money that's genuinely free to use, say for paying down debt, buybacks, or dividends.
Assessment: Opportunities & Risks
A relevant fabless chip designer across four end markets, with a real, accelerating AI tailwind: the optical data-center business for AI platforms carries the recovery (revenue up 29.7 percent in 2025, Q1 2026 up 43 percent year over year; infrastructure segment roughly 46 percent of Q1 2026 revenue). High gross margin (roughly 57 percent), Q2 2026 outlook of $160 to $170 million. That is the documented strength.
The potential existential find: before the arbitration court in Singapore, Silicon Motion demands the termination fee (roughly $160 million) plus damages "in excess of the termination fee" from the $3.8 billion deal that burst in 2023. As of March 31, 2026 no reserve stands against it; MaxLinear itself calls its cash (just over $61 million) "may not be sufficient" for a damages event. An unfavorable award could exceed cash and a large part of equity.
Still deeply red under U.S. GAAP: a net loss of $136.7 million (2025), minus $45.1 million in Q1 2026; research eats roughly 45 percent of revenue. Positive again on a non-GAAP basis (Q1 2026: plus $19.4 million), but cash shrank from $72.8 million to $61.1 million within one quarter — a thin cushion that the unquantified proceeding turns into the sore spot.
The business is pronouncedly cyclical: revenue collapsed roughly 68 percent from 2022 through 2024. One strong quarter in an upswing is no proof against the next downturn. Add noticeable customer concentration (two customers roughly 28 percent, top ten roughly 65 percent of revenue) — a cluster risk; in the worst case a dent, not an existential question.
Very strong momentum (24 scanner hits, the price up roughly 540 percent in twelve months) but a very high valuation: enterprise value roughly 15 times revenue, price-to-sales around 17, expected price-to-earnings around 65 (no current P/E for lack of GAAP profit). The mean analyst price target sits below the accumulated price — momentum has outrun the fundamental assessment.
MaxLinear (MXL) has a real story — optical chips for AI data centers drive an accelerating revenue recovery, and the stock has risen more than fivefold in twelve months (24 scanner hits). But the price drowns out three documented burdens: still deeply red numbers under U.S. GAAP with shrinking cash, pronounced cyclicality (revenue down roughly 68 percent since 2022) — and above all a Silicon Motion arbitration that demands the termination fee plus unquantified damages and for which no reserve sits on the balance sheet. Our findings argue for elevated caution as long as this potential existential find stays open. Not investment advice.
- Materiality gate (find by find, 07/10/2026): (1) Silicon Motion arbitration (SIAC Singapore) — termination fee of roughly $160 million plus damages "in excess of the termination fee" from the $3.8 billion deal that burst in 2023. Checked for existential character: no reserve as of 03/31/2026 ("no material loss contingencies have been accrued … a reasonable estimate … cannot be made"), cash just over $61 million, equity roughly $452 million; MaxLinear itself calls its means "may not be sufficient" → structural-to-existential find, may determine the rating on its own. (2) GAAP loss/cash burn — net loss $136.7 million (2025), Q1 2026 −$45.1 million, cash $72.8 → $61.1 million; non-GAAP positive, credit line unused → structural find that sharpens the thinness of the cash cushion and thus the existential find. (3) Cyclicality — revenue 2022–2024 −68 percent, profitable in the upswing → price find. (4) Valuation — EV/revenue ~15, P/S ~17, expected P/E ~65, price +540 percent, analyst target below → price find. (5) Customer concentration: two customers 28 percent, top ten 65 percent → cluster-risk dent. Result: one existential find (unquantified, without reserve) plus several price/structural finds and an unproven turnaround → "vorsicht" (not "beobachten", because an existential find is present; not "verkaufen", because there is no manipulation, no going-concern warning, and the operating recovery is documented).
- Valuation metrics are orders of magnitude as of mid-2026 (EV/revenue ~15, P/S ~17, expected P/E ~65). A current P/E does not exist for lack of GAAP profit. SEC-dated anchor: non-affiliate market value as of June 30, 2025 = $1.1 billion (10-K cover page); mid-2026 market value roughly $8.5 billion (the stock up more than fivefold). Analyses are evergreen; daily prices are not a buy argument.
- Revenue, result, cash and end-market series come from the annual report (10-K) 2025 (Items 1/1A/3/7, notes), the quarterly report (10-Q) Q1 2026 and the quarterly 8-K (Exhibit 99.1, GAAP/non-GAAP, Q2 guidance) and were cross-checked against the fundamental data. End markets 2025: broadband 44% (+75%), infrastructure 32% (+30%), connectivity 17% (+40%), industrial & multi-market 8% (−50%); Q1 2026 infrastructure already roughly 46%.
- Special-situations screening (EDGAR full index, CIK 1288469): the dominant special situation is the Silicon Motion deal that burst in 2023 (S-4/425/SC TO-T/DEFM from 2022/2023) and the ongoing SIAC arbitration plus shareholder suits (dismissed "with prejudice" at the district level, appeal pending before the Ninth Circuit). Institutional holders mostly passive (Schedule 13G), no activist SC 13D with strategic-review character, no takeover 8-K.
- AI dossier: category "sells AI" (rated 07/10/2026). Reasoning: the annual report (10-K) 2025 describes own products using "patented machine learning techniques" inside "next-generation communication and artificial intelligence systems"; the quarterly 8-K attributes the revenue jump directly to optical data-center products "across scale-up and scale-out AI platforms", and the optical data-center business is the fastest-growing revenue block (roughly 46 percent of Q1 2026). AI infrastructure is thus a documented, load-bearing revenue source — "sells" under the precedence rule (consistent with comparable optics-for-AI suppliers).
About the Company
MaxLinear, Inc. bietet Kommunikations-Systems-on-Chip-Lösungen in den USA, Asien, Europa und international an.
| Employees | 1,115 |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Carlsbad, CA |
| Website | maxlinear.com |
| IPO Date | 24. Mar 2010 |
| Next Earnings | 22. Jul 2026 |
Management
| Name | Title | Birth Year |
|---|---|---|
| Kishore Seendripu Ph.D. | Co-Founder, Chairman, CEO & President | 1969 |
| Steven G. Litchfield | CFO & Chief Corporate Strategy Officer | 1969 |
| Connie H. Kwong | Corporate Controller & Principal Accounting Officer | 1979 |
| Curtis Ling Ph.D. | Co-Founder & Chief Technical Officer | 1965 |
| Mohan Kambhammettu | Senior Vice President of Global Operations | – |
| Michael Bollesen | Senior Vice President of Sales | 1969 |
| Madhukar Reddy Ph.D. | Senior Vice President of Worldwide Engineering | 1969 |
| Amit Bavisi | Senior VP and GM of Analog & Mixed Signal Business | – |
| Puneet Sethi | Senior Vice President of Network Infrastructure & Carrier Business | – |
| Vikas Choudhary | Senior Vice President of Connectivity & Storage Business | – |
Executives per the latest required filings; titles kept in their original language. Source: fundamental data.
Chart
Interactive price chart (TradingView).
Data as of: July 20, 2026 · Source: fundamental data & SEC filings (annual and quarterly reports, 10-K/10-Q)
Note: pure fact-based analysis, not investment advice and not a solicitation to buy or sell. All figures without guarantee.