Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) Shares Down 2.6% on Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• Qualcomm shares fell 2.6% to about $147.61 after UBS cut its price target from $190 to $170 while maintaining a neutral rating. The broader analyst consensus remains “Hold,” with an average target of $203.63.
• Qualcomm exceeded quarterly revenue expectations with $9.95 billion in sales versus $9.69 billion expected, supported by automotive and IoT growth, although EPS slightly missed estimates and revenue declined 4% year over year.
• The company is pursuing diversification beyond handsets, raising its automotive outlook to roughly $7 billion and targeting $40 billion in non-handset revenue by fiscal 2029. Qualcomm also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.92 per share, equivalent to a 2.5% annual yield.

Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM - Get Free Report)'s stock price dropped 2.6% during mid-day trading on Friday after UBS Group lowered their price target on the stock from $190.00 to $170.00. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Qualcomm traded as low as $146.15 and last traded at $147.61. 13,760,528 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 17% from the average daily volume of 16,561,588 shares. The stock had previously closed at $151.60.

QCOM has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Melius Research set a $220.00 price target on Qualcomm in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Qualcomm in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their target price on shares of Qualcomm from $200.00 to $165.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $165.00 target price on shares of Qualcomm in a report on Thursday. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group upgraded shares of Qualcomm from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $225.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, May 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, twenty-one have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Qualcomm currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $203.63.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Heather S. Ace sold 3,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.82, for a total transaction of $569,024.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 39,735 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,065,677.70. This trade represents a 7.45% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Patricia Y. Grech sold 829 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.77, for a total value of $167,267.33. 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 21,529 shares of company stock valued at $4,011,441 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.05% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Qualcomm

Here are the key news stories impacting Qualcomm this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Qualcomm exceeded revenue expectations in fiscal Q3, reporting $9.95 billion in sales versus the $9.69 billion consensus estimate. Automotive and IoT growth helped offset weaker handset demand. QCOM Q2 Deep Dive: Data Center and Automotive Growth Offset Smartphone Headwinds
• Positive Sentiment: Record automotive revenue and emerging data-center sales support Qualcomm’s diversification strategy. Management raised its automotive outlook to approximately $7 billion and is targeting $40 billion in non-handset revenue by fiscal 2029. Qualcomm Q3 2026 Earnings Call Highlights
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts continue to see long-term upside from automotive, AI and data-center expansion. TD Cowen retained a “buy” rating despite reducing its price target to $175.

Institutional Trading of Qualcomm

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. World Investment Advisors grew its stake in shares of Qualcomm by 14.3% in the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 64,911 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $11,103,000 after purchasing an additional 8,130 shares during the last quarter. MUFG Securities EMEA plc raised its stake in shares of Qualcomm by 112.2% during the fourth quarter. MUFG Securities EMEA plc now owns 43,986 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $7,524,000 after purchasing an additional 23,262 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB lifted its holdings in shares of Qualcomm by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,533,420 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $262,291,000 after purchasing an additional 23,110 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Qualcomm by 47.5% during the fourth quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 18,691 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $3,197,000 after purchasing an additional 6,018 shares during the period. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in Qualcomm by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 143,690 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $24,578,000 after buying an additional 7,804 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.35% of the company's stock.

Qualcomm Trading Down 2.6%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a current ratio of 2.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $155.58 billion, a PE ratio of 17.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.62 and a beta of 1.63. The business's 50-day moving average is $200.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $167.76.

Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The wireless technology company reported $2.21 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.23 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $9.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.69 billion. Qualcomm had a return on equity of 39.89% and a net margin of 21.01%.The firm's quarterly revenue was down 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.77 EPS. Qualcomm has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 2.050-2.250 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Qualcomm Incorporated will post 7.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Qualcomm Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 3rd will be given a $0.92 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 3rd. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. Qualcomm's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.59%.

Qualcomm Company 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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