Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) Shares Up 1.8% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM) rose 1.8% on Friday. The company traded as high as $176.98 and last traded at $175.91. Approximately 7,092,264 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 53% from the average session volume of 15,113,714 shares. The stock had previously closed at $172.83.

Key Stories Impacting Qualcomm

Here are the key news stories impacting Qualcomm this week:

• Positive Sentiment: ETFs recorded approximately $141.5 million in net Qualcomm purchases on Tuesday, followed by additional ETF buying reported for October 21. Passive and institutional demand can provide near-term support for QCOM. Qualcomm sees $141.5 million in net ETF buying
• Positive Sentiment: An analyst upgrade and a higher price target of $200 signal improving sentiment and suggest potential upside from current valuation levels. Qualcomm stock jumps on analyst upgrade Qualcomm price target raised to $200
• Positive Sentiment: A bullish investment thesis argues Qualcomm is being undervalued as it builds businesses in automotive, data centers and custom silicon, potentially making it a longer-term artificial-intelligence beneficiary rather than solely a handset-chip company. This chip stock could be a sleeper AI winner
• Positive Sentiment: Qualcomm declared a quarterly dividend of $0.92 per share, or $3.68 annualized, representing an approximately 2.1% yield and reinforcing its shareholder-return appeal. Qualcomm declares quarterly dividend
• Neutral Sentiment: Qualcomm will release fiscal fourth-quarter and full-year 2026 results after the market closes on November 4. The report and guidance are the next major catalysts for the stock. Qualcomm schedules fiscal 2026 earnings release
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage from 37 analysts highlights substantial investor attention ahead of earnings, while a valuation review says the shares are near fair value after strong long-term gains. Qualcomm schedules November results Qualcomm stock remains near fair value
• Negative Sentiment: Erste Group cut its fiscal 2027 EPS forecast to $7.28 from $7.31, below the broader consensus estimate of $7.71, indicating modest pressure on forward earnings expectations. Qualcomm earnings estimate cut
• Negative Sentiment: Qualcomm’s executive vice president sold approximately $437,650 of company stock, which may weigh modestly on sentiment, although a single insider transaction is not necessarily a change in business outlook. Qualcomm insider selling
• Negative Sentiment: Comparisons with Intel point to Qualcomm’s more uneven revenue trend and recent sequential declines. Reports also describe automotive growth being offset by pressure on handset earnings, keeping smartphone weakness a key risk. Intel versus Qualcomm revenue comparison Qualcomm automotive growth and handset pressure

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird set a $400.00 price target on shares of Qualcomm in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Susquehanna raised their price target on shares of Qualcomm from $160.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Arete Research upgraded Qualcomm to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 16th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Qualcomm from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $265.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Evercore set a $159.00 target price on Qualcomm in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, twenty-one have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $205.83.

Qualcomm Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 2.02 and a quick ratio of 1.28. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $175.97 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $181.04. The company has a market cap of $187.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.36, a PEG ratio of 4.00 and a beta of 1.65.

Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The wireless technology company reported $2.21 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.23 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $9.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.69 billion. Qualcomm had a net margin of 21.01% and a return on equity of 38.36%. Qualcomm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.77 earnings per share. Qualcomm has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 2.050-2.250 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Qualcomm Incorporated will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Qualcomm Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 3rd will be issued a $0.92 dividend. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 3rd. Qualcomm’s payout ratio is presently 42.59%.

Insider Activity at Qualcomm

In other news, CAO Patricia Grech sold 208 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $35,360.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Akash Palkhiwala sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.06, for a total value of $437,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 20,799 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,641,072.94. This trade represents a 10.73% 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. In the last three months, insiders have sold 33,458 shares of company stock worth $6,198,144. 0.05% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Qualcomm

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Baxter Bros Inc. bought a new position in Qualcomm during the second quarter valued at about $17,844,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Qualcomm in the second quarter worth $28,068,000. Tensor Edge Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Qualcomm during the 2nd quarter worth about $147,315,000. Sawyer & Company Inc acquired a new position in Qualcomm in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,403,000. Finally, Robinson Value Management Ltd. lifted its position in Qualcomm by 40.5% in the third quarter. Robinson Value Management Ltd. now owns 34,184 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $6,291,000 after purchasing an additional 9,858 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.35% of the company’s stock.

Qualcomm Company Profile

Qualcomm Incorporated is a technology company that develops and commercializes wireless communications and semiconductor technologies. Through Qualcomm Technologies, Inc, the company designs integrated circuits, system software and related platforms used in smartphones, personal computers, automobiles, industrial equipment, consumer devices and other connected products. Its Snapdragon platforms support mobile computing, connectivity, artificial intelligence and multimedia applications, while its broader portfolio includes radio-frequency systems, networking and edge-computing technologies.

Qualcomm also operates a significant technology-licensing business through its Qualcomm Technology Licensing segment.