Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) Stock Price Down 2.4% - Here's Why

Key Points

• Investor skepticism about Qualcomm’s AI strategy is weighing on the stock as handset revenue remains pressured and newer AI, data-center and computing initiatives have yet to prove their growth potential.
• Qualcomm’s latest results beat revenue expectations at $9.95 billion, but EPS slightly missed forecasts and revenue fell 4% year over year. Smartphones still generated more than half of quarterly revenue, leaving diversification and upcoming guidance as key tests.
• A favorable Arm licensing verdict strengthened Qualcomm’s ability to develop custom Oryon CPUs, but shares remain below their 50-day and 200-day moving averages; analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating despite a $204.10 average price target.

Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM - Get Free Report) shares were down 2.4% during mid-day trading on Wednesday. The stock traded as low as $171.02 and last traded at $172.62. 11,124,148 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 27% from the average session volume of 15,301,109 shares. The stock had previously closed at $176.86.

Trending Headlines about Qualcomm

Here are the key news stories impacting Qualcomm this week:

• Positive Sentiment: A Delaware federal jury found that Arm Holdings breached its licensing agreement with Qualcomm and confirmed Qualcomm’s right to continue developing custom Oryon CPUs. The ruling strengthens Qualcomm’s strategic flexibility as Arm changes its business model, although the company received only nominal damages. How Qualcomm’s Legal Win Over Arm Could Reshape the Long-Term Thesis for QCOM Investors
• Positive Sentiment: The court decision reduces a major legal risk tied to Qualcomm’s CPU roadmap and its relationship with Meta Platforms, potentially supporting longer-term growth in PCs, automotive systems and other markets beyond smartphones. Qualcomm, Arm weigh in after jury finds Arm breached license agreement
• Neutral Sentiment: Qualcomm’s recent earnings showed revenue of about $9.95 billion, above expectations, but earnings per share slightly missed estimates and revenue declined 4% year over year. The company’s upcoming December quarter is viewed as an important test of whether new AI and data-center initiatives can offset handset weakness.
• Neutral Sentiment: Qualcomm remains heavily dependent on smartphones: handset chips generated approximately $5.1 billion, or more than half of quarterly revenue. Investors are therefore focused on phone-chip volumes, customer demand and the pace of diversification into automotive, IoT and computing. How Much Of Qualcomm Stock Rides On One Business?
• Negative Sentiment: Investors appear unconvinced by Qualcomm’s “AI” repositioning, viewing the company as caught between a declining or pressured smartphone business and unproven growth in AI and data-center chips. This skepticism is weighing on the broader investment narrative. Qualcomm at $175: The Narrative Shift Sending Capital Out The Door
• Negative Sentiment: Several brokerages rate Qualcomm “Hold,” reflecting concerns that its valuation requires successful execution in newer markets while its core handset exposure remains substantial. Shares are also trading below their 50-day and 200-day moving averages, signaling weak near-term momentum.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on QCOM. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Qualcomm from $198.00 to $175.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Benchmark cut their target price on shares of Qualcomm from $300.00 to $270.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 27th. Evercore set a $159.00 price objective on shares of Qualcomm in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Barclays restated an "underweight" rating on shares of Qualcomm in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on Qualcomm from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, twenty-one have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $204.10.

Qualcomm Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The stock has a market cap of $184.33 billion, a PE ratio of 19.98, a P/E/G ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 1.65. The business's 50-day moving average price is $174.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $178.72.

Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The wireless technology company reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.23 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $9.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.69 billion. Qualcomm had a net margin of 21.01% and a return on equity of 38.36%. The business's revenue was down 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.77 EPS. Qualcomm has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 2.050-2.250 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Qualcomm Incorporated will post 7.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Akash Palkhiwala sold 2,500 shares of Qualcomm stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.85, for a total value of $457,125.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 18,184 shares in the company, valued at $3,324,944.40. The trade was a 12.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed 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, CAO Patricia Grech sold 208 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $35,360.00. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 29,131 shares of company stock worth $5,441,226 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.05% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Qualcomm

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Qualcomm in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $17,583,115,000. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Qualcomm by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 52,763,263 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $9,750,123,000 after buying an additional 671,537 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Qualcomm by 22.7% in the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 17,202,619 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $3,178,872,000 after purchasing an additional 3,179,720 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Qualcomm by 28.1% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 12,645,603 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $2,163,030,000 after acquiring an additional 2,771,490 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi grew its holdings in shares of Qualcomm by 94.1% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 10,195,741 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $1,884,071,000 after buying an additional 4,942,908 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.35% of the company's stock.

Qualcomm Company Profile

Qualcomm Incorporated NASDAQ: QCOM is a technology company headquartered in San Diego, California, that develops wireless communications technologies, semiconductors and related software. Its products support mobile devices, connected computing, automotive systems, industrial equipment and consumer electronics.

Qualcomm's semiconductor business operates primarily through its Qualcomm CDMA Technologies segment. Its offerings include Snapdragon platforms and systems-on-chip, cellular modems, radio-frequency components, connectivity products, and processors for smartphones, personal computers, extended-reality devices, vehicles and the Internet of Things.

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