QUALCOMM (NASDAQ:QCOM) Shares Up 0.3% – Should You Buy?

QUALCOMM Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM)’s share price shot up 0.3% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $159.12 and last traded at $158.76. 736,880 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 91% from the average session volume of 8,197,267 shares. The stock had previously closed at $158.26.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on QCOM. Melius began coverage on QUALCOMM in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $180.00 target price on the stock. Susquehanna lowered their price target on QUALCOMM from $230.00 to $210.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Barclays lowered their price target on QUALCOMM from $200.00 to $185.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Melius Research started coverage on QUALCOMM in a report on Monday, December 9th. They set a “hold” rating and a $180.00 target price for the company. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their target price on QUALCOMM from $205.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $205.32.

QUALCOMM Trading Down 0.8 %

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $164.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $164.15. 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 cap of $173.68 billion, a PE ratio of 16.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.28.

QUALCOMM (NASDAQ:QCOM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The wireless technology company reported $2.86 earnings per share 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%. Analysts anticipate that QUALCOMM Incorporated will post 9.39 EPS for the current year.

QUALCOMM Announces Dividend

The firm 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.17%. QUALCOMM’s payout ratio is currently 36.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Akash J. Palkhiwala sold 3,337 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.82, for a total value of $523,308.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 59,778 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,374,385.96. This trade represents a 5.29 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Heather S. Ace sold 1,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.24, for a total value of $246,784.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 24,393 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,762,376.32. The trade was a 6.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. 0.08% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in QCOM. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in QUALCOMM during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Banque Transatlantique SA acquired a new position in QUALCOMM in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. CKW Financial Group acquired a new position in QUALCOMM in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in QUALCOMM in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Sunbeam Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in QUALCOMM in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.35% of the company’s stock.

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.