Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) Stock Jumps 1.8% - What's Next?

Key Points

• Qualcomm shares rose 1.8% in Wednesday mid-day trading, reaching $176.57 after closing at $173.53; trading volume was 8% below average.
• Analyst views remain mixed: the consensus rating is Hold with an average price target of $197.13, while several firms cut targets or maintained bearish ratings. ETFs, however, bought a net $293.8 million of QCOM shares on Nov. 9.
• Quarterly results slightly beat expectations, with EPS of $2.17 and revenue of $10.44 billion, though revenue fell 8.4% year over year. Qualcomm also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.92 per share, equivalent to a 2.1% yield.

Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM - Get Free Report)'s share price rose 1.8% during mid-day trading on Wednesday. The company traded as high as $182.17 and last traded at $176.57. Approximately 14,017,174 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 8% from the average session volume of 15,179,884 shares. The stock had previously closed at $173.53.

Key Headlines Impacting Qualcomm

These are some of the QCOM headlines that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: ETFs bought a net $293.8 million of QCOM shares on Nov. 9, indicating notable fund demand. Article
• Negative Sentiment: Bank of America maintained an “underperform” rating despite acknowledging the data-center opportunity. Barclays analyst Tom O’Malley also kept a “sell” rating, reflecting skepticism about near-term prospects. Article
• Negative Sentiment: Freedom Broker downgraded Qualcomm from Buy to Hold and cut its price target to $185 from $200, warning that investment in newer growth businesses could pressure margins for longer than expected. Article

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group decreased their target price on Qualcomm from $185.00 to $180.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 5th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Qualcomm from a "hold (c)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Qualcomm from $180.00 to $150.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Qualcomm from $215.00 to $200.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 5th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price target on shares of Qualcomm from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, twenty-one have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $197.13.

Qualcomm Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $188.93 billion, a PE ratio of 13.90, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.86, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $178.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $169.68.

Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The wireless technology company reported $2.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $10.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.12 billion. Qualcomm had a return on equity of 30.62% and a net margin of 31.60%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.00 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Qualcomm Incorporated will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Qualcomm Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.92 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 3rd. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Qualcomm's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.98%.

Insider Activity at Qualcomm

In other news, CAO Patricia Grech sold 208 shares of Qualcomm stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $35,360.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Heather Ace sold 3,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.42, for a total transaction of $529,344.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 39,379 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,514,074.18. This represents a 7.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. Over the last three months, insiders sold 32,520 shares of company stock worth $6,101,411. 0.05% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Qualcomm

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of QCOM. Patron Partners LLC increased its holdings in Qualcomm by 5.3% in the third quarter. Patron Partners LLC now owns 7,077 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $1,302,000 after buying an additional 359 shares during the last quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Qualcomm by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,089 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $384,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Qualcomm in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,545,000. Private Wealth Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Qualcomm by 444.0% in the 3rd quarter. Private Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 31,178 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $5,738,000 after acquiring an additional 25,447 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Birchcreek Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Qualcomm by 19.0% in the 3rd quarter. Birchcreek Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,015 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $1,107,000 after acquiring an additional 962 shares during the last quarter. 74.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Qualcomm Company Profile

Qualcomm Incorporated is a technology company that develops wireless communications technologies and semiconductor products. Its chips and related systems are used in smartphones and other connected devices, with products spanning mobile processors, modem-radio frequency systems, and connectivity solutions. The Snapdragon brand includes platforms for mobile devices as well as computing, automotive, and extended-reality applications. Qualcomm also develops technology for automotive systems and the Internet of Things, including connectivity and processing solutions for vehicles, industrial equipment, and consumer devices.

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