Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) Earns Market Perform Rating from Sanford C. Bernstein

Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM)‘s stock had its “market perform” rating restated by stock analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $140.00 price target on the wireless technology company’s stock, down from their prior price target of $175.00. Sanford C. Bernstein’s target price suggests a potential upside of 7.40% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on QCOM. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Qualcomm in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $200.00 target price on shares of Qualcomm in a report on Thursday, February 5th. DZ Bank raised Qualcomm to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Seaport Research Partners reiterated a “sell” rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of Qualcomm in a report on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Qualcomm from $180.00 to $150.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $165.14.

Qualcomm Price Performance

QCOM stock opened at $130.35 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $139.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.93 and a beta of 1.25. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $142.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $160.70. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. Qualcomm has a 12-month low of $120.80 and a 12-month high of $205.95.

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

Qualcomm declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, March 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the wireless technology company to reacquire up to 14.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

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

Institutional Trading of Qualcomm

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Cornerstone Planning LLC bought a new position in shares of Qualcomm during the 4th quarter valued at $3,145,000. World Investment Advisors boosted its position in Qualcomm by 14.3% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 64,911 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $11,103,000 after purchasing an additional 8,130 shares during the last quarter. Nalls Sherbakoff Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Qualcomm during the 4th quarter valued at about $145,000. Meadowbrook Advisors Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Qualcomm during the 4th quarter valued at about $410,000. Finally, DUTCH ASSET Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Qualcomm during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,563,000. 74.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.