Merit Financial Group LLC Increases Position in QUALCOMM Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM)

Merit Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of QUALCOMM Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM - Free Report) by 40.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 22,889 shares of the wireless technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 6,591 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in QUALCOMM were worth $3,516,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of QUALCOMM by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 51,615,929 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $8,777,289,000 after buying an additional 870,814 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of QUALCOMM by 7.9% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 27,128,468 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $4,600,625,000 after purchasing an additional 1,989,725 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc raised its position in QUALCOMM by 0.9% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 10,036,779 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $1,999,114,000 after acquiring an additional 86,195 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of QUALCOMM by 6.3% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 8,356,581 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $1,421,037,000 after acquiring an additional 498,284 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in shares of QUALCOMM by 30.2% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 7,506,863 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $1,250,644,000 after purchasing an additional 1,741,432 shares in the last quarter. 74.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other QUALCOMM news, General Counsel Ann C. Chaplin sold 7,717 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.59, for a total value of $1,239,273.03. Following the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 17,153 shares in the company, valued at $2,754,600.27. This trade represents a 31.03 % 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. Also, insider Alexander H. Rogers sold 10,373 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.59, for a total value of $1,665,800.07. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 33,383 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,360,975.97. The trade was a 23.71 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 26,882 shares of company stock valued at $4,314,649. Company insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

QUALCOMM Price Performance

QCOM stock traded up $3.13 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $164.56. The stock had a trading volume of 8,063,912 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,526,932. QUALCOMM Incorporated has a 52-week low of $139.26 and a 52-week high of $230.63. The company has a market cap of $182.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.25. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $158.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $168.57. The company has a current ratio of 2.40, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

QUALCOMM (NASDAQ:QCOM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The wireless technology company reported $2.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $10.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.90 billion. QUALCOMM had a net margin of 26.03% and a return on equity of 38.81%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that QUALCOMM Incorporated will post 9.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

QUALCOMM Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 6th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.07%. QUALCOMM's dividend payout ratio is currently 37.82%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on QUALCOMM from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of QUALCOMM from $200.00 to $185.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Mizuho cut their price target on QUALCOMM from $245.00 to $215.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Loop Capital assumed coverage on shares of QUALCOMM in a research report on Monday, November 11th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $180.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Melius Research started coverage on shares of QUALCOMM in a research report on Monday, December 9th. They set a "hold" rating and a $180.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $206.57.

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.