Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) Stock Price Up 4.2% - What's Next?

Key Points

• Qualcomm shares rose 4.2% in Thursday trading, reaching an intraday high of $249.46 on volume well above average. The stock last traded at $243.29, up from the prior close of $233.40.
• Recent earnings were slightly better than expected, with Qualcomm reporting $2.65 EPS versus the $2.56 consensus estimate and revenue of $10.60 billion, roughly in line with expectations. The company also guided Q3 2026 EPS to a range of 2.10 to 2.30.
• Shareholder returns remain a focus as Qualcomm raised its quarterly dividend to $0.92 per share and continues a $20 billion share buyback authorization. The new dividend implies a 1.5% annual yield and reflects a 40% payout ratio.

Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM - Get Free Report) rose 4.2% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $249.46 and last traded at $243.29. Approximately 19,959,428 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 26% from the average daily volume of 15,783,258 shares. The stock had previously closed at $233.40.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

QCOM has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. DZ Bank cut shares of Qualcomm from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $195.00 price target for the company. in a report on Friday, May 8th. Susquehanna raised their price target on shares of Qualcomm from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Daiwa Securities Group raised shares of Qualcomm from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $225.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, May 8th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Qualcomm in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Summit Insights raised shares of Qualcomm from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Qualcomm has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $181.79.

Qualcomm Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $256.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 30.82 and a beta of 1.49. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $161.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $160.11. The company has a quick ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 2.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The wireless technology company reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.56 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $10.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.59 billion. Qualcomm had a net margin of 22.31% and a return on equity of 42.11%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter 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. Equities research analysts forecast that Qualcomm Incorporated will post 7.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Qualcomm Increases Dividend

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

Qualcomm announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, March 17th that allows the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the wireless technology company to reacquire up to 14.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Qualcomm

In related news, EVP Heather S. Ace sold 3,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $7,065,677.70. This trade represents a 7.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Patricia Y. Grech sold 829 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.77, for a total transaction 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 have sold 19,306 shares of company stock worth $3,435,583 over the last ninety days. 0.05% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Qualcomm

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP acquired a new stake in Qualcomm during the first quarter valued at $26,000. Cloud Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Qualcomm during the third quarter valued at $27,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its position in Qualcomm by 90.9% during the fourth quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 168 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the period. Torren Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Qualcomm in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its position in shares of Qualcomm by 17,000.0% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 171 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.35% of the company's stock.

About Qualcomm

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.