QUALCOMM (NASDAQ:QCOM) Trading 2.5% Higher – Here’s What Happened

Shares of QUALCOMM Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM) rose 2.5% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $160.48 and last traded at $160.81. Approximately 887,671 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 8,209,983 shares. The stock had previously closed at $156.82.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on QCOM shares. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on QUALCOMM from $205.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Melius Research started coverage on shares of QUALCOMM in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They set a “hold” rating and a $180.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of QUALCOMM from $200.00 to $185.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. StockNews.com cut shares of QUALCOMM from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Melius started coverage on QUALCOMM in a report on Monday, December 9th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $180.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $205.32.

QUALCOMM Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.99 and a current ratio of 2.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $177.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.28. The business has a fifty day moving average of $164.59 and a 200-day moving average of $163.96.

QUALCOMM (NASDAQ:QCOM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The wireless technology company reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.93 by ($0.07). QUALCOMM had a return on equity of 39.51% and a net margin of 25.94%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that QUALCOMM Incorporated will post 9.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

QUALCOMM Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.12%. QUALCOMM’s payout ratio is 36.32%.

Insider Transactions at QUALCOMM

In other news, insider Alexander H. Rogers sold 19,287 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.83, for a total value of $3,275,511.21. Following the sale, the insider now owns 20,762 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,526,010.46. The trade was a 48.16 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Akash J. Palkhiwala sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.80, for a total value of $509,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 63,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,716,927. This represents a 4.54 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 27,968 shares of company stock valued at $4,685,077. Company insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On QUALCOMM

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in QUALCOMM by 39.7% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,841,103 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $284,708,000 after purchasing an additional 523,244 shares during the last quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of QUALCOMM by 21.9% in the fourth quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 27,596 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $4,239,000 after buying an additional 4,955 shares in the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of QUALCOMM during the 4th quarter valued at $2,058,000. Burney Co. boosted its stake in shares of QUALCOMM by 665.6% during the 4th quarter. Burney Co. now owns 146,911 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $22,568,000 after acquiring an additional 127,722 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Howard Bailey Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of QUALCOMM in the 4th quarter worth $240,000. 74.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.