Westpac Banking Corp Lowers Position in Qualcomm Incorporated $QCOM

Key Points

• Westpac Banking Corp reduced its Qualcomm stake by 25.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 16,963 shares and leaving it with 50,564 shares worth about $8.65 million.
• Qualcomm continues to attract major institutional ownership, with firms like Vanguard and Geode increasing holdings; overall, 74.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
• Analysts remain mixed on QCOM, with a consensus "Hold" rating and an average price target of $181.79, even as the company posted a quarterly EPS beat and announced a higher dividend of $0.92 per share.

Westpac Banking Corp cut its stake in Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM - Free Report) by 25.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 50,564 shares of the wireless technology company's stock after selling 16,963 shares during the period. Westpac Banking Corp's holdings in Qualcomm were worth $8,649,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Qualcomm by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 114,144,068 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $19,524,350,000 after buying an additional 647,076 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Qualcomm by 12.5% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 28,897,079 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $4,931,968,000 after buying an additional 3,221,924 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Qualcomm in the fourth quarter worth about $2,591,056,000. Amundi lifted its holdings in Qualcomm by 9.9% in the third quarter. Amundi now owns 12,671,635 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $2,136,486,000 after buying an additional 1,138,541 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Qualcomm by 141.8% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,437,240 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $2,069,059,000 after buying an additional 7,292,783 shares during the period. 74.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

QCOM has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Qualcomm from $150.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Qualcomm from $160.00 to $140.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Oppenheimer lowered shares of Qualcomm from a "market perform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Qualcomm from $150.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Qualcomm from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $181.79.

Qualcomm Price Performance

QCOM stock opened at $240.84 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $168.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $161.56. Qualcomm Incorporated has a 52-week low of $121.99 and a 52-week high of $259.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $253.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.18, a PEG ratio of 28.36 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a current ratio of 2.37.

Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The wireless technology company reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.56 by $0.09. Qualcomm had a net margin of 22.31% and a return on equity of 42.11%. The firm had revenue of $10.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.59 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.85 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Qualcomm has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.100-2.300 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Qualcomm Incorporated will post 7.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Qualcomm Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.92 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 4th. This is a positive change from Qualcomm's previous quarterly dividend of $0.89. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Qualcomm's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.00%.

Qualcomm announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, March 17th that permits the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the wireless technology company to reacquire up to 14.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Qualcomm News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Qualcomm this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Qualcomm highlighted its AI push at Computex, saying 2026 is the “year of the agent” and unveiling its “Dragonfly” brand for AI/data-center chips, reinforcing the company’s growth narrative beyond smartphones. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst and price-target commentary centered on whether Qualcomm can reach $300 this year, reflecting upbeat sentiment around its valuation and AI-driven upside potential. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Qualcomm’s entry-level Snapdragon PC chip is being positioned to win share in laptops with all-day battery life and built-in AI, with support from Acer, HP, and Lenovo. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage noted Qualcomm remains part of the broader AI-PC trade, with debate over whether the stock is outperforming the technology sector on a relative basis. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Nvidia’s new RTX Spark/laptop chip has intensified competition in AI PCs, pressuring Qualcomm shares as investors worry about share loss in a key growth market. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Several reports said Qualcomm shares slipped when Nvidia unveiled its AI PC push, underscoring near-term concerns that the chipmaker could face tougher competition in Windows-on-Arm and AI-enabled laptops. Article Title

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Akash J. Palkhiwala sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $211.90, for a total transaction of $529,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 28,184 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,972,189.60. This trade represents a 8.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Cristiano R. Amon sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total transaction of $1,800,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 197,568 shares of the company's stock, valued at $35,562,240. This trade represents a 4.82% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 19,306 shares of company stock worth $3,435,583 over the last three months. 0.05% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Qualcomm Profile

Qualcomm Incorporated is a global semiconductor and telecommunications equipment company headquartered in San Diego, California. Founded in 1985, the company is known for its development of wireless technologies and for playing a central role in the evolution of digital cellular standards, including CDMA and subsequent generations of mobile standards. Qualcomm’s business combines the design and sale of semiconductor products with a patent licensing program for wireless technologies and related intellectual property.

The company’s product portfolio includes system-on-chip (SoC) platforms marketed under the Snapdragon brand, cellular modem and RF front-end components, connectivity solutions for Wi‑Fi and Bluetooth, and processors and platforms aimed at automotive, IoT, networking and edge-computing applications.

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