Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) Shares Up 3.2% - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Qualcomm shares rose 3.2% on Friday, with trading volume well above average as the stock climbed as high as $259.92 before settling at $251.02.
• Several analysts remain constructive on the stock: recent updates included buy or overweight ratings from firms like Rosenblatt, Piper Sandler, Summit Insights, Loop Capital, and HSBC, though the overall consensus rating is still Hold.
• Qualcomm reported better-than-expected quarterly EPS of $2.65 and raised its dividend to $0.92 per share, while also authorizing a $20 billion share buyback that signals management believes the stock may be undervalued.

Shares of Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM - Get Free Report) shot up 3.2% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $259.92 and last traded at $251.02. 28,361,153 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 78% from the average session volume of 15,916,709 shares. The stock had previously closed at $243.29.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on QCOM. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $190.00 price target on shares of Qualcomm in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Qualcomm in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Summit Insights upgraded Qualcomm from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Loop Capital upgraded Qualcomm from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $185.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, HSBC started coverage on shares of Qualcomm in a research report on Friday, May 8th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $181.79.

Qualcomm Stock Up 3.2%

The firm's fifty day moving average price is $163.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $160.62. The company has a market capitalization of $264.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.28, a P/E/G ratio of 28.91 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 2.37 and a quick ratio of 1.61.

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

Qualcomm Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. This is a boost from Qualcomm's previous quarterly dividend of $0.89. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 4th. Qualcomm's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.70%.

Qualcomm declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, March 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the wireless technology company to purchase up to 14.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Qualcomm

In other news, EVP Akash J. Palkhiwala sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.34, for a total transaction of $325,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 30,684 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,999,352.56. This represents a 7.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a 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 stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.77, for a total value of $167,267.33. 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 have sold a total of 19,306 shares of company stock valued at $3,435,583 over the last three months. 0.05% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Qualcomm

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of QCOM. World Investment Advisors increased its position in shares of Qualcomm by 14.3% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 64,911 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $11,103,000 after acquiring an additional 8,130 shares during the period. Swedbank AB increased its position in shares of Qualcomm by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,533,420 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $262,291,000 after acquiring an additional 23,110 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc. increased its position in shares of Qualcomm by 47.5% in the fourth quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 18,691 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $3,197,000 after acquiring an additional 6,018 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Qualcomm by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 143,690 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $24,578,000 after acquiring an additional 7,804 shares during the period. Finally, Valley Wealth Managers Inc. increased its position in shares of Qualcomm by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 40,009 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $6,844,000 after acquiring an additional 2,288 shares during the period. 74.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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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