Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) Stock Gets Price Target Trim from Susquehanna

Key Points

• Susquehanna cut its Qualcomm price target from $185 to $165 and maintained a neutral rating, implying 4.73% downside from the stock’s current price.
• Qualcomm narrowly beat quarterly EPS and revenue estimates, but revenue fell 8.4% year over year; smartphone-chip sales weakness and concerns about handset demand weighed on the outlook.
• Qualcomm’s diversification could provide growth opportunities: SpaceX selected its platforms for a planned U.S. 5G network, while the company highlighted potential in automotive and data-center markets.

Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM - Get Free Report) had its price target reduced by investment analysts at Susquehanna from $185.00 to $165.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "neutral" rating on the wireless technology company's stock. Susquehanna's target price would suggest a potential downside of 4.73% from the stock's current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also issued reports on QCOM. Benchmark dropped their target price on shares of Qualcomm from $300.00 to $270.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Qualcomm in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Arete Research raised shares of Qualcomm to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, October 16th. Freedom Capital raised shares of Qualcomm from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities restated a "buy" rating and issued a $235.00 price target on shares of Qualcomm in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, twenty-one have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Qualcomm currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $204.79.

Qualcomm Stock Performance

QCOM opened at $173.19 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $184.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.70 and a beta of 1.70. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $178.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $169.48. The company has a quick ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 2.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. Qualcomm has a 12-month low of $121.99 and a 12-month high of $259.92.

Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The wireless technology company reported $2.17 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.01. Qualcomm had a return on equity of 38.36% and a net margin of 21.01%. The company had revenue of $10.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.00 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Qualcomm will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Qualcomm

In other news, EVP Akash Palkhiwala sold 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.06, for a total transaction of $437,650.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 20,799 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,641,072.94. The trade was a 10.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Patricia Grech sold 208 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $35,360.00. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 30,258 shares of company stock worth $5,727,616 over the last quarter. 0.05% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Qualcomm

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Csenge Advisory Group lifted its holdings in Qualcomm by 13.2% during the third quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 5,605 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $1,032,000 after acquiring an additional 653 shares in the last quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Qualcomm by 4.8% in the third quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 179,953 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $33,119,000 after acquiring an additional 8,166 shares in the last quarter. Gen Wealth Partners Inc increased its holdings in shares of Qualcomm by 12.8% in the third quarter. Gen Wealth Partners Inc now owns 1,869 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $344,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. 71 West Capital Partners increased its holdings in shares of Qualcomm by 28.3% in the third quarter. 71 West Capital Partners now owns 6,043 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $1,112,000 after acquiring an additional 1,332 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nemes Rush Group LLC raised its position in shares of Qualcomm by 0.4% during the third quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 137,715 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $25,345,000 after purchasing an additional 570 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.35% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Qualcomm

Here are the key news stories impacting Qualcomm this week:

• Positive Sentiment: SpaceX selected Qualcomm’s Dragonwing platforms and software for Starlink Mobile’s planned U.S. terrestrial 5G network. The multiyear agreement expands Qualcomm’s infrastructure business and is described as its largest 5G initiative to date. Reuters: Qualcomm signs major 5G infrastructure deal with SpaceX
• Positive Sentiment: Qualcomm says non-handset revenue is expected to account for half of chip sales this fiscal year. Automotive revenue nearly doubled, and management highlighted a potential $15 billion data-center opportunity by fiscal 2029, supporting its diversification strategy. Qualcomm Q4 earnings call highlights
• Neutral Sentiment: ETFs added about $112.7 million of Qualcomm shares in Tuesday’s session, indicating some institutional demand, though this may not offset concerns about the company’s operating outlook. Yahoo Finance: ETFs add Qualcomm holdings
• Negative Sentiment: The latest quarter beat estimates narrowly, with EPS of $2.17 and revenue of roughly $10.4 billion, but revenue fell about 8% year over year. Smartphone-chip sales dropped 26%, weighing on revenue and chip margins; investors are also concerned that memory shortages could further pressure handset demand and that profit guidance was weaker than hoped. Reuters: Weak smartphone-chip sales overshadow data-center momentum

Qualcomm Company Profile

Qualcomm Incorporated is a technology company that develops and commercializes wireless communications and semiconductor technologies. Through Qualcomm Technologies, Inc, the company designs integrated circuits, system software and related platforms used in smartphones, personal computers, automobiles, industrial equipment, consumer devices and other connected products. Its Snapdragon platforms support mobile computing, connectivity, artificial intelligence and multimedia applications, while its broader portfolio includes radio-frequency systems, networking and edge-computing technologies.

Qualcomm also operates a significant technology-licensing business through its Qualcomm Technology Licensing segment.

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