QUALCOMM (NASDAQ:QCOM) Stock Price Up 1.1% – Still a Buy?

QUALCOMM Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM) shares rose 1.1% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $177.08 and last traded at $174.19. Approximately 8,684,415 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 1% from the average daily volume of 8,739,704 shares. The stock had previously closed at $172.34.

QUALCOMM News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting QUALCOMM this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Qualcomm completed its acquisition of Alphawave Semi roughly a quarter ahead of schedule — the deal adds high‑speed connectivity IP and appoints Alphawave CEO Tony Pialis to lead Qualcomm’s data‑center business, accelerating Qualcomm’s push beyond handsets into higher‑growth data‑center markets. Qualcomm Completes Acquisition of Alphawave Semi
• Positive Sentiment: Market reaction: coverage and trading show shares rose after the Alphawave deal as investors rewarded the strategic expansion into data‑center chips and connectivity IP — supporting the view of a re‑rating away from a pure handset story. Qualcomm Stock Rises After $2.4 Billion Alphawave Semi Deal
• Positive Sentiment: Recent performance: research notes and screens point to Qualcomm outperforming broader market moves recently, reflecting investor interest in its expanding end markets and improving revenue mix. Qualcomm (QCOM) Surpasses Market Returns
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation and analyst views are mixed — commentary notes Qualcomm’s P/E is at decade highs as the market re‑rates the name; some firms remain cautious (Cantor Fitzgerald neutral) while others keep buy views and higher targets, so continued execution in 2026 will be critical to justify the multiple. Qualcomm’s Monster Rally Has a Catch—Can the Stock Keep Climbing?
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: EVP Ann Chaplin sold 7,180 shares (~$1.28M) earlier this week (reported), trimming her stake ~23% — insider sales can be read as profit‑taking and may create short‑term investor caution. QUALCOMM (NASDAQ:QCOM) EVP Ann Chaplin Sells 7,180 Shares
• Negative Sentiment: Another EVP, Akash J. Palkhiwala, sold 2,538 shares (~$447k) — additional insider sales add to the narrative of executives taking gains ahead of the new year. SEC filing: Insider Sale

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on QCOM shares. TD Cowen boosted their target price on QUALCOMM from $185.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of QUALCOMM in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Arete Research set a $200.00 price objective on shares of QUALCOMM in a research report on Tuesday, August 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of QUALCOMM from $140.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 price target on shares of QUALCOMM in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $192.94.

QUALCOMM Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $187.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.84, a PEG ratio of 3.82 and a beta of 1.22. The company’s 50 day moving average is $171.84 and its 200 day moving average is $163.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 2.82 and a quick ratio of 2.10.

QUALCOMM (NASDAQ:QCOM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The wireless technology company reported $3.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $0.13. QUALCOMM had a net margin of 12.51% and a return on equity of 43.22%. The company had revenue of $11.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.74 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.69 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. QUALCOMM has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 3.300-3.500 EPS. Research analysts forecast that QUALCOMM Incorporated will post 9.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

QUALCOMM Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 4th were given a dividend of $0.89 per share. This represents a $3.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 4th. QUALCOMM’s payout ratio is presently 72.80%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Akash J. Palkhiwala sold 2,538 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.95, for a total value of $446,561.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 42,265 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,436,526.75. This represents a 5.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Alexander H. Rogers sold 15,917 shares of QUALCOMM stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.01, for a total transaction of $2,833,385.17. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 26,071 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,640,898.71. The trade was a 37.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 200,023 shares of company stock valued at $33,558,154 in the last three months. 0.08% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of QUALCOMM

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of QCOM. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC lifted its stake in shares of QUALCOMM by 656,661.0% during the 2nd quarter. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC now owns 58,773,542 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $9,360,274,000 after purchasing an additional 58,764,593 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in QUALCOMM in the second quarter valued at $2,713,603,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in QUALCOMM by 141.8% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,437,240 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $2,069,059,000 after buying an additional 7,292,783 shares during the period. Amundi boosted its stake in QUALCOMM by 38.2% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 11,533,094 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $1,866,451,000 after buying an additional 3,186,524 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in QUALCOMM by 36.8% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,552,427 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $1,090,025,000 after buying an additional 1,764,252 shares during the period. 74.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.