QUALCOMM (NASDAQ:QCOM) Trading 0.2% Higher - Here's Why

Shares of QUALCOMM Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM - Get Free Report) traded up 0.2% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $157.06 and last traded at $156.58. 712,267 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 91% from the average session volume of 8,204,845 shares. The stock had previously closed at $156.29.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

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QUALCOMM Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 2.62, a quick ratio of 1.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The company has a market capitalization of $173.44 billion, a PE ratio of 16.75, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.28. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $164.51 and its 200-day simple moving average is $163.98.

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

QUALCOMM Dividend Announcement

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 given 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 2.17%. QUALCOMM's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.32%.

Insider Transactions at QUALCOMM

In other QUALCOMM news, insider Heather S. Ace sold 1,600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.24, for a total value of $246,784.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 24,393 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,762,376.32. This trade represents a 6.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Alexander H. Rogers sold 19,287 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 20,762 shares in the company, valued at $3,526,010.46. This represents a 48.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of QUALCOMM

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Eagle Strategies LLC increased its holdings in shares of QUALCOMM by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Strategies LLC now owns 1,427 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $219,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. lifted its stake in QUALCOMM by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. now owns 1,717 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $264,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. TBH Global Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of QUALCOMM by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. TBH Global Asset Management LLC now owns 7,050 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $1,083,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. PDS Planning Inc boosted its position in QUALCOMM by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 4,110 shares of the wireless technology company's stock valued at $631,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the period. Finally, Toth Financial Advisory Corp increased its position in shares of QUALCOMM by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 2,190 shares of the wireless technology company's stock worth $336,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. 74.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.