QUALCOMM (NASDAQ:QCOM) Stock Price Down 7.5% - Should You Sell?

Shares of QUALCOMM Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM - Get Free Report) fell 7.5% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $142.47 and last traded at $142.60. 3,215,599 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 62% from the average session volume of 8,573,773 shares. The stock had previously closed at $154.08.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

QCOM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays cut their price target on shares of QUALCOMM from $200.00 to $185.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated a "neutral" rating and set a $160.00 price objective on shares of QUALCOMM in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Melius initiated coverage on QUALCOMM in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $180.00 price objective on the stock. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on QUALCOMM from $199.00 to $179.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of QUALCOMM from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $205.32.

QUALCOMM Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.99, a current ratio of 2.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $143.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.28. The company's 50 day moving average is $161.74 and its 200-day moving average is $163.05.

QUALCOMM (NASDAQ:QCOM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The wireless technology company reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.93 by ($0.07). QUALCOMM had a return on equity of 39.51% and a net margin of 25.94%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that QUALCOMM Incorporated will post 9.39 EPS for the current year.

QUALCOMM Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 6th were paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.62%. QUALCOMM's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Heather S. Ace sold 1,600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.24, for a total value of $246,784.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 24,393 shares in the company, valued at $3,762,376.32. This trade represents a 6.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Alexander H. Rogers sold 19,287 shares of the company'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 $3,526,010.46. This trade represents a 48.16 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 27,968 shares of company stock worth $4,685,077 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in QUALCOMM by 20,700.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,262,754 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $501,192,000 after acquiring an additional 3,247,068 shares during the period. Farmers Trust Co. increased its stake in shares of QUALCOMM by 29.9% in the first quarter. Farmers Trust Co. now owns 4,074 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $626,000 after purchasing an additional 938 shares in the last quarter. Sage Capital Advisors llc boosted its holdings in shares of QUALCOMM by 1.8% in the first quarter. Sage Capital Advisors llc now owns 17,196 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $2,642,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Moody National Bank Trust Division grew its holdings in QUALCOMM by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division now owns 17,887 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $2,748,000 after buying an additional 333 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Private Trust Co. increased its holdings in QUALCOMM by 29.4% during the 1st quarter. Legacy Private Trust Co. now owns 13,493 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $2,073,000 after acquiring an additional 3,065 shares during the period. 74.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

QUALCOMM Company Profile

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.