Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) Lowered to “Hold” Rating by Freedom Capital

Freedom Capital cut shares of Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on QCOM. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $140.00 price objective (down from $175.00) on shares of Qualcomm in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Qualcomm in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Oppenheimer lowered shares of Qualcomm from a “market perform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. BNP Paribas Exane lowered Qualcomm to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Tigress Financial lifted their price target on Qualcomm from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $180.37.

Qualcomm Trading Down 6.1%

QCOM opened at $200.08 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $146.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $157.55. The company has a market capitalization of $210.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.75, a PEG ratio of 26.40 and a beta of 1.49. Qualcomm has a 52 week low of $121.99 and a 52 week high of $247.90. 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) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The wireless technology company reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.56 by $0.09. Qualcomm had a return on equity of 42.11% and a net margin of 22.31%.The business had revenue of $10.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.59 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.85 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Qualcomm has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.100-2.300 EPS. Analysts forecast that Qualcomm will post 7.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Qualcomm declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, March 17th that allows the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the wireless technology company to purchase up to 14.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Qualcomm Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 4th will be issued a $0.92 dividend. This is an increase from Qualcomm’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.89. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 4th. Qualcomm’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.70%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Qualcomm news, CEO Cristiano R. Amon sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 197,568 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $35,562,240. This trade represents a 4.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Heather S. Ace sold 3,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.82, for a total value of $569,024.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 39,735 shares in the company, valued at $7,065,677.70. The trade was a 7.45% 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 ninety days, insiders have sold 18,477 shares of company stock valued at $3,268,316. 0.05% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Basepoint Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Qualcomm by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Basepoint Wealth LLC now owns 3,333 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $429,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the period. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. grew its stake in Qualcomm by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. now owns 4,126 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $686,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Certified Advisory Corp increased its holdings in shares of Qualcomm by 0.6% in the third quarter. Certified Advisory Corp now owns 10,085 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $1,678,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. ProVise Management Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Qualcomm by 2.6% in the third quarter. ProVise Management Group LLC now owns 2,560 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $426,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the period. Finally, Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Qualcomm by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,401 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $1,095,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.35% of the company’s stock.

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.