Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) Stock Price Up 4.2% – Time to Buy?

Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM)’s stock price traded up 4.2% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $249.46 and last traded at $243.29. 19,959,428 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 26% from the average session volume of 15,783,258 shares. The stock had previously closed at $233.40.

Key Stories Impacting Qualcomm

Here are the key news stories impacting Qualcomm this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Qualcomm’s recently reported earnings continue to support the stock, with shares still well above the level seen immediately after the last results. A Zacks note asks whether the post-earnings rally can continue, signaling ongoing investor optimism around the company’s momentum. Qualcomm (QCOM) Up 35.5% Since Last Earnings Report: Can It Continue?
• Positive Sentiment: Several reports say Qualcomm quietly signed a major AI-related deal with ByteDance, which investors view as a meaningful growth catalyst and evidence that Qualcomm is gaining traction in AI chips and related computing opportunities. While Nvidia battles AMD, Qualcomm quietly signed the biggest AI deal in its history with ByteDance
• Positive Sentiment: Related coverage highlighted Qualcomm’s stock hitting record highs after the ByteDance deal, reinforcing the market’s view that the agreement could expand Qualcomm’s AI revenue prospects. Qualcomm stock just hit new record highs. Investors can thank a ByteDance deal.
• Positive Sentiment: Another article framed the ByteDance agreement as an eye-catching strategic move, suggesting Qualcomm is being re-rated as more than just a handset chip supplier. Qualcomm makes eye-catching move with TikTok parent deal
• Neutral Sentiment: Qualcomm also presented at Bernstein’s Strategic Decisions Conference, but the transcript itself does not point to a clear new catalyst in the provided summary. QUALCOMM Incorporated (QCOM) Presents at Bernstein 42nd Annual Strategic Decisions Conference Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: One report warned that Apple’s in-house modem chips could threaten Qualcomm’s major customer base over time, which raises a structural risk for future smartphone-related revenue. Apple’s In-House Modem Chips Threaten Qualcomm’s (QCOM) Major Customer Base

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Summit Insights raised Qualcomm from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Zacks Research raised Qualcomm from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Loop Capital raised Qualcomm from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $185.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Benchmark boosted their target price on Qualcomm from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Qualcomm in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $181.79.

Qualcomm Stock Up 3.2%

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 company has a market capitalization of $264.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.28, a PEG ratio of 30.14 and a beta of 1.49. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $166.07 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $161.25.

Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. The company had revenue of $10.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.59 billion. Qualcomm had a return on equity of 42.11% and a net margin of 22.31%.Qualcomm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.85 earnings per share. Qualcomm has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.100-2.300 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Qualcomm Incorporated will post 7.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Qualcomm Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 4th will be given a dividend of $0.92 per share. This is an increase from Qualcomm’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.89. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 4th. Qualcomm’s payout ratio is currently 38.70%.

Qualcomm declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, March 17th that permits the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the wireless technology company to repurchase up to 14.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Qualcomm

In other news, EVP Heather S. Ace sold 3,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.82, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 7.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Akash J. Palkhiwala sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.34, for a total value of $325,850.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 30,684 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,999,352.56. This trade represents a 7.53% 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 19,306 shares of company stock valued at $3,435,583 over the last three months. 0.05% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Krane Financial Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Qualcomm during the first quarter valued at approximately $529,000. Alpine Woods Capital Investors LLC boosted its position in Qualcomm by 344.1% during the first quarter. Alpine Woods Capital Investors LLC now owns 33,243 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $4,281,000 after purchasing an additional 25,757 shares during the last quarter. Axiom Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Qualcomm during the first quarter valued at approximately $65,000. WNY Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Qualcomm during the first quarter valued at approximately $279,000. Finally, Wellington Grp LLC boosted its position in Qualcomm by 100.5% during the first quarter. Wellington Grp LLC now owns 417 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares during the last quarter. 74.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.