Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) Shares Down 2.6% – What’s Next?

Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM)’s share price traded down 2.6% during mid-day trading on Friday. The stock traded as low as $167.20 and last traded at $172.47. Approximately 10,397,270 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 31% from the average daily volume of 15,128,178 shares. The stock had previously closed at $177.14.

Qualcomm News Roundup

Here’s some of the latest news about QCOM:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised its rating on QCOM from “strong sell” to “hold,” indicating a less negative view, though not a bullish recommendation. Article: Zacks Research rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Qualcomm completed a $4 billion senior-notes offering. The financing provides capital but also represents debt that the company will need to service. Article: Qualcomm Completes $4 Billion Senior Notes Offering
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst commentary highlights falling earnings estimates, margin pressure, and significant investment needs. Qualcomm’s data-center growth plans also face customer-concentration and execution risks, making the targets uncertain. Article: Qualcomm’s $5 Billion Data Center Ramp Puts Execution in Focus Now

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on QCOM shares. Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Qualcomm in a research note on Thursday, November 5th. Susquehanna decreased their price target on shares of Qualcomm from $185.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 5th. Freedom Broker downgraded shares of Qualcomm from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $200.00 to $185.00 in a report on Monday. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their price target on shares of Qualcomm from $200.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Arete Research raised shares of Qualcomm to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Qualcomm has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $197.13.

Qualcomm Price Performance

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $178.65 and a 200 day simple moving average of $169.90. The company has a market capitalization of $184.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 4th. The wireless technology company reported $2.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $10.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.12 billion. Qualcomm had a return on equity of 30.62% and a net margin of 31.60%. The company’s revenue was down 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.00 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Qualcomm Incorporated will post 6.75 EPS for the current year.

Qualcomm Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 3rd. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Qualcomm’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.98%.

Insider Transactions at Qualcomm

In other Qualcomm news, EVP Akash J. Palkhiwala sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.85, for a total transaction of $457,125.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 18,184 shares in the company, valued at $3,324,944.40. The trade was a 12.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Cristiano R. Amon sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $2,000,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 177,568 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $35,513,600. The trade was a 5.33% 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. Insiders have sold a total of 32,520 shares of company stock valued at $6,101,411 in the last three months. 0.05% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Qualcomm

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. ABS Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Qualcomm in the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. ABS Direct Equity Fund LLC acquired a new position in shares of Qualcomm during the second quarter worth about $34,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Qualcomm during the third quarter worth about $35,000. Team Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Qualcomm in the third quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Burk Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of Qualcomm by 191.7% in the second quarter. Burk Holdings LLC now owns 210 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the period. 74.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Qualcomm Company Profile

Qualcomm Incorporated is a technology company that develops wireless communications technologies and semiconductor products. Its chips and related systems are used in smartphones and other connected devices, with products spanning mobile processors, modem-radio frequency systems, and connectivity solutions. The Snapdragon brand includes platforms for mobile devices as well as computing, automotive, and extended-reality applications. Qualcomm also develops technology for automotive systems and the Internet of Things, including connectivity and processing solutions for vehicles, industrial equipment, and consumer devices.