Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) Shares Down 2.2% – Here’s What Happened

Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM) shares traded down 2.2% during mid-day trading on Monday. The stock traded as low as $180.30 and last traded at $180.79. 9,764,068 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 37% from the average daily volume of 15,515,269 shares. The stock had previously closed at $184.87.

Key Qualcomm News

Here are the key news stories impacting Qualcomm this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Multiyear Huawei patent deal supports licensing outlook. Huawei agreed to license Qualcomm’s patents covering artificial intelligence, 5G, computing, and networking technologies. The agreement should provide recurring royalty revenue and strengthens Qualcomm’s position in emerging AI-related markets. Huawei agrees to a multi-year patent licensing deal with Qualcomm
• Positive Sentiment: Share buybacks remain a support for investors. Qualcomm is identified among AI-related companies using substantial cash flow and balance-sheet strength to repurchase shares, which can bolster per-share earnings and signal management confidence. Follow the Money: 5 AI Stocks Buying Back Shares by the Billions
• Positive Sentiment: Investors see potential in diversification. Qualcomm is expanding beyond smartphones into automotive, data centers, and on-device or “agentic” AI, offering possible long-term growth avenues as handset demand matures. Prediction: Qualcomm Could Be on the Verge of a Major Transformation
• Neutral Sentiment: Market rotation is influencing semiconductor performance. While TSMC and Broadcom advanced on manufacturing and AI-related developments, Qualcomm pulled back, suggesting investors are favoring certain AI infrastructure names over mobile-chip exposure. Taiwan Semiconductor Gains 2% to Record as Musk Confirms Early Terafab Talks
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation and volatility remain important risks. Commentary highlights Qualcomm’s relatively high sensitivity to market swings and questions how much future AI and diversification gains are already reflected in the stock. How Much Could You Lose In Qualcomm Stock?
• Negative Sentiment: Renewed Arm litigation creates potential downside. Qualcomm and Arm are headed to trial again, with the possibility of significant damages adding legal uncertainty to the investment case. Qualcomm and Arm head to trial again
• Negative Sentiment: Growth comparisons remain unfavorable. Recent analysis says Qualcomm’s revenue has been stable to declining while peers such as Micron show stronger acceleration, reinforcing concerns about slowing top-line momentum. Micron Technology vs. Qualcomm: What Revenue Trends Tell Investors
• Negative Sentiment: Handset dependence and analyst caution persist. Apple’s efforts to reduce its handset business and recent downward revisions raise concerns about Qualcomm’s core smartphone-related demand, despite its diversification initiatives.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

QCOM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Freedom Capital raised shares of Qualcomm from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $160.00 price target on shares of Qualcomm in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Mizuho increased their price target on Qualcomm from $170.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Piper Sandler started coverage on Qualcomm in a research note on Wednesday, September 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $190.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Evercore set a $159.00 price target on Qualcomm in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, twenty-one have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $204.10.

Qualcomm Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 2.02. The company has a market cap of $189.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.92, a PEG ratio of 4.16 and a beta of 1.65. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $171.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $176.39.

Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The wireless technology company reported $2.21 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.23 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $9.95 billion during 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 quarterly revenue was down 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.77 earnings per share. Qualcomm has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 2.050-2.250 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Qualcomm Incorporated will post 7.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Qualcomm Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.92 per share. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 3rd. Qualcomm’s payout ratio is 42.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Qualcomm

In other Qualcomm news, CEO Cristiano Amon sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total value of $2,000,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 177,568 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,513,600. This represents a 5.33% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed 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 Qualcomm stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.04, for a total transaction of $470,528.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 36,535 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,372,106.40. This trade represents a 8.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 31,631 shares of company stock valued at $5,893,251. 0.05% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Qualcomm

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Qualcomm during the second quarter valued at $17,583,115,000. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Qualcomm by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 52,763,263 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $9,750,123,000 after purchasing an additional 671,537 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake 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 period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Qualcomm by 28.1% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 12,645,603 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $2,163,030,000 after purchasing an additional 2,771,490 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in shares of Qualcomm by 13.8% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 11,595,307 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $1,983,377,000 after purchasing an additional 1,410,312 shares in the last quarter. 74.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.