QUALCOMM (NASDAQ:QCOM) Trading Down 0.6% - Time to Sell?

QUALCOMM Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM - Get Free Report)'s stock price dropped 0.6% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $153.21 and last traded at $153.62. Approximately 4,421,372 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 50% from the average daily volume of 8,909,033 shares. The stock had previously closed at $154.58.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on QCOM. StockNews.com cut QUALCOMM from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Loop Capital started coverage on QUALCOMM in a research note on Monday, November 11th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $180.00 target price on the stock. Melius Research assumed coverage on shares of QUALCOMM in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They set a "hold" rating and a $180.00 price target on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on QUALCOMM from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Melius began coverage on shares of QUALCOMM in a report on Monday, December 9th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $180.00 price target on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $208.00.

QUALCOMM Stock Down 0.6 %

The stock has a market cap of $170.67 billion, a PE ratio of 17.09, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 2.40 and a quick ratio of 1.79. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $161.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $172.91.

QUALCOMM (NASDAQ:QCOM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The wireless technology company reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.25. QUALCOMM had a return on equity of 38.81% and a net margin of 26.03%. The business had revenue of $10.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.90 billion. Analysts expect that QUALCOMM Incorporated will post 9.09 EPS for the current year.

QUALCOMM Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 5th were given a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 5th. QUALCOMM's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.82%.

Insider Buying and Selling at QUALCOMM

In other news, General Counsel Ann C. Chaplin sold 1,901 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.06, for a total transaction of $313,779.06. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now owns 12,007 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,981,875.42. This represents a 13.67 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Alexander H. Rogers sold 10,373 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.59, for a total transaction of $1,665,800.07. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 33,383 shares in the company, valued at $5,360,975.97. This trade represents a 23.71 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 26,882 shares of company stock worth $4,314,649. Insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of QUALCOMM

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Lantz Financial LLC bought a new stake in QUALCOMM in the 2nd quarter valued at $234,000. Summit Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of QUALCOMM by 79.3% in the second quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 5,116 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $1,019,000 after purchasing an additional 2,263 shares during the last quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. lifted its position in shares of QUALCOMM by 7.0% in the second quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 3,637 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $724,000 after buying an additional 237 shares in the last quarter. Verus Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in QUALCOMM by 14.1% during the second quarter. Verus Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,218 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $1,039,000 after buying an additional 645 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers grew its holdings in QUALCOMM by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 2,292,181 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $456,556,000 after buying an additional 40,239 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.35% of the company's stock.

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.