Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) Stock Rating Lowered by Freedom Capital

Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) was downgraded by investment analysts at Freedom Capital from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Benchmark increased their price target on shares of Qualcomm from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Seaport Research Partners reiterated a “sell” rating and set a $100.00 target price on shares of Qualcomm in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Summit Insights raised Qualcomm from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Barclays raised their price target on Qualcomm from $130.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Argus set a $220.00 price target on Qualcomm in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Qualcomm presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $180.37.

Qualcomm Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ QCOM opened at $200.08 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 2.37 and a quick ratio of 1.61. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $146.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $157.55. Qualcomm has a 1-year low of $121.99 and a 1-year high of $247.90. The company has a market cap of $210.88 billion, a PE ratio of 21.75, a P/E/G ratio of 26.40 and a beta of 1.49.

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

Qualcomm announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, March 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the wireless technology company to repurchase up to 14.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Qualcomm

In related news, CEO Cristiano R. Amon sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $1,800,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 197,568 shares in the company, valued at $35,562,240. This represents a 4.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Heather S. Ace sold 3,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.82, for a total value of $569,024.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 39,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,065,677.70. The trade was a 7.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 sold 18,477 shares of company stock worth $3,268,316 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.05% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in QCOM. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in Qualcomm by 116.6% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 17,356 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $2,666,000 after acquiring an additional 9,343 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Qualcomm by 15.4% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,542 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $391,000 after purchasing an additional 340 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Qualcomm by 44.3% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,325 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $530,000 after purchasing an additional 1,020 shares during the last quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC increased its stake in shares of Qualcomm by 6.1% during the 2nd quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 5,778 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $920,000 after purchasing an additional 333 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Qualcomm by 9.7% during the 2nd quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 6,800 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $1,083,000 after purchasing an additional 603 shares in the last quarter. 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.