US Asset Management LLC Lowers Stake in QUALCOMM Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM)

US Asset Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of QUALCOMM Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM) by 5.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 2,717 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock after selling 155 shares during the period. US Asset Management LLC’s holdings in QUALCOMM were worth $417,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in QCOM. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of QUALCOMM during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,721,882,000. Amundi boosted its position in shares of QUALCOMM by 36.6% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 14,579,529 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $2,313,634,000 after purchasing an additional 3,905,918 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of QUALCOMM during the 4th quarter worth approximately $527,053,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of QUALCOMM by 12.7% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 13,289,513 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $2,041,535,000 after purchasing an additional 1,493,076 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in QUALCOMM by 17.0% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 9,780,687 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $1,502,509,000 after buying an additional 1,424,106 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.35% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Heather S. Ace sold 1,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.24, for a total value of $246,784.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 24,393 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,762,376.32. This trade represents a 6.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Akash J. Palkhiwala sold 3,337 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.82, for a total transaction of $523,308.34. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 59,778 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,374,385.96. This trade represents a 5.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 12,568 shares of company stock valued at $1,818,305. Insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of QUALCOMM to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 target price on shares of QUALCOMM in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Susquehanna reduced their target price on shares of QUALCOMM from $210.00 to $190.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Loop Capital reduced their target price on shares of QUALCOMM from $180.00 to $155.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $185.00 target price on shares of QUALCOMM in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, QUALCOMM currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $192.08.

QUALCOMM Trading Down 2.6%

NASDAQ QCOM opened at $147.37 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 2.62 and a quick ratio of 1.99. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $145.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $156.54. The company has a market capitalization of $161.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.29. QUALCOMM Incorporated has a 12 month low of $120.80 and a 12 month high of $230.63.

QUALCOMM (NASDAQ:QCOM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The wireless technology company reported $2.85 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.82 by $0.03. QUALCOMM had a net margin of 25.94% and a return on equity of 39.51%. The firm had revenue of $10.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.58 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.44 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 17.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that QUALCOMM Incorporated will post 9.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

QUALCOMM Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 5th will be given a dividend of $0.89 per share. This is an increase from QUALCOMM’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 5th. QUALCOMM’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.25%.

About QUALCOMM

QUALCOMM Incorporated engages in the development and commercialization of foundational technologies for the wireless industry worldwide. It operates through three segments: Qualcomm CDMA Technologies (QCT); Qualcomm Technology Licensing (QTL); and Qualcomm Strategic Initiatives (QSI). The QCT segment develops and supplies integrated circuits and system software based on 3G/4G/5G and other technologies for use in wireless voice and data communications, networking, computing, multimedia, and position location products.