Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) Stock Price Down 1.1% – Should You Sell?

Shares of Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM) dropped 1.1% on Friday . The company traded as low as $129.77 and last traded at $129.90. Approximately 78,335,394 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 576% from the average daily volume of 11,594,859 shares. The stock had previously closed at $131.28.

Key Headlines Impacting Qualcomm

Here are the key news stories impacting Qualcomm this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Board approves a new $20 billion repurchase authorization, boosting total buyback capacity and signaling management confidence in buying back shares at current levels. QUALCOMM (QCOM): Board Approves New $20.0 billion Stock Repurchase Authorization
• Positive Sentiment: Shareholders reportedly dismissed China-risk concerns while greenlighting the $20B buyback, reducing a potential governance or geopolitical overhang. Qualcomm (QCOM) Stock: Shareholders Dismiss China Risk Concerns as $20B Buyback Gets Green Light
• Positive Sentiment: Qualcomm raised its quarterly dividend by ~3.4% and signaled stronger buyback activity, supported by solid cash flow — a near-term income/return cushion for investors. QCOM Hikes Dividend on Solid Cash Flow: Should You Stay Invested?
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple outlets highlight the $20B repurchase as a major reason to consider buying QCOM, framing the move as management taking advantage of a depressed share price. A $20 billion reason to buy Qualcomm stock now
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts and investors debate whether Qualcomm is an AI bargain: long-term AI, automotive and robotics opportunities exist, but recent underperformance and limited AI data-center exposure temper enthusiasm. Qualcomm Could Be the Biggest AI Bargain of the Year
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage pieces note Qualcomm’s dividend raise and buyback make it an income/value candidate at ~15x forward P/E, but caution that a 2026 earnings dip could keep volatility high. As Qualcomm Stock Raises Its Dividend, Is QCOM Stock a Buy
• Negative Sentiment: Seaport Research downgraded QCOM and set a $100 price target, warning the shares could fall more than 20% from current levels — a catalyst for selling pressure. QCOM Stock Warning: Why Analysts Warn Qualcomm Could Plunge More Than 20% from Here
• Negative Sentiment: Street-low price targets and fresh downgrades are cited as spooking analysts; after a large selloff, some argue downside risks from handset demand and memory shortages remain. Qualcomm Just Got a Street-Low Price Target—What’s Spooking Analysts?

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on QCOM shares. DZ Bank raised shares of Qualcomm to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Qualcomm in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their price target on Qualcomm from $185.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 2nd. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Qualcomm from $190.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $177.00 price objective on Qualcomm in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $168.00.

Qualcomm Stock Down 1.1%

The firm has a market capitalization of $138.60 billion, a PE ratio of 26.84 and a beta of 1.25. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $144.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $161.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.83, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The wireless technology company reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.38 by $0.12. Qualcomm had a net margin of 11.96% and a return on equity of 44.09%. The firm had revenue of $12.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.16 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.41 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Qualcomm has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.450-2.650 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Qualcomm Incorporated will post 9.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Qualcomm Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 5th will be given a dividend of $0.89 per share. This represents a $3.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 5th. Qualcomm’s payout ratio is presently 73.55%.

Qualcomm declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, March 17th that allows the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the wireless technology company to reacquire up to 14.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Qualcomm

In other Qualcomm news, EVP Heather S. Ace sold 3,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.00, for a total value of $438,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 16,393 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,245,841. This represents a 16.33% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Akash J. Palkhiwala sold 3,333 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.65, for a total value of $458,787.45. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 35,599 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,900,202.35. This trade represents a 8.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 9,866 shares of company stock valued at $1,474,796 in the last three months. 0.05% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Qualcomm

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Qualcomm during the 2nd quarter worth $2,713,603,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Qualcomm by 141.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,437,240 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $2,069,059,000 after purchasing an additional 7,292,783 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Qualcomm by 12.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 28,897,079 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $4,931,968,000 after purchasing an additional 3,221,924 shares in the last quarter. Amundi lifted its position in shares of Qualcomm by 38.2% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 11,533,094 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $1,866,451,000 after purchasing an additional 3,186,524 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Qualcomm by 28.1% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 12,645,603 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $2,163,030,000 after purchasing an additional 2,771,490 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.35% of the company’s stock.

Qualcomm Company Profile

Qualcomm Incorporated is a global semiconductor and telecommunications equipment company headquartered in San Diego, California. Founded in 1985, the company is known for its development of wireless technologies and for playing a central role in the evolution of digital cellular standards, including CDMA and subsequent generations of mobile standards. Qualcomm’s business combines the design and sale of semiconductor products with a patent licensing program for wireless technologies and related intellectual property.

The company’s product portfolio includes system-on-chip (SoC) platforms marketed under the Snapdragon brand, cellular modem and RF front-end components, connectivity solutions for Wi‑Fi and Bluetooth, and processors and platforms aimed at automotive, IoT, networking and edge-computing applications.