Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) Announces Earnings Results

Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The wireless technology company reported $2.21 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.23 by ($0.02), FiscalAI reports. Qualcomm had a net margin of 22.31% and a return on equity of 42.11%. The company had revenue of $9.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.69 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.77 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. Qualcomm updated its Q4 2026 guidance to 2.050-2.250 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Qualcomm’s conference call:

• Qualcomm raised its fiscal 2029 non-handset revenue target to more than $40 billion, including over $24 billion from automotive and IoT and over $15 billion from data center, nearly doubling its prior outlook.
• Automotive revenue reached a record $1.6 billion, up 61% year over year, and Qualcomm raised its fiscal 2026 exit annualized automotive revenue target to approximately $7 billion. Expanded agreements with BMW and Stellantis strengthen its multi-year ADAS and digital cockpit pipeline.
• Qualcomm expects its two initial custom data-center silicon engagements to begin generating revenue in the December quarter, while its High Bandwidth Compute product has completed tape-out and is targeted for launch in mid-2027.
• Industry-wide memory inflation and supply-chain cost increases are pressuring handset demand and QCT gross margins, which are expected to remain below the historical range in the near term. Qualcomm is implementing broad-based, double-digit price increases, with benefits expected to emerge gradually over the next several quarters.
• Qualcomm expects Apple-related product revenue to decline more rapidly as its share of upcoming iPhone launches will be materially below the previously estimated 20%, including an anticipated roughly 50% sequential decline from September to December. QCT is also forecasting lower fourth-quarter margins and increased operating expenses from Modular and data-center investments.

Qualcomm Stock Down 3.7%

NASDAQ QCOM traded down $5.71 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $149.97. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 8,071,653 shares, compared to its average volume of 16,485,738. Qualcomm has a 52 week low of $121.99 and a 52 week high of $259.92. The company has a market capitalization of $158.07 billion, a PE ratio of 16.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.84 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a current ratio of 2.37, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $201.26 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $167.94.

Qualcomm Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 3rd will be issued a $0.92 dividend. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 3rd. Qualcomm’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.00%.

Key Qualcomm News

Here are the key news stories impacting Qualcomm this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Qualcomm reported fiscal third-quarter revenue of $9.95 billion, above the $9.69 billion analyst consensus. Automotive revenue reached a record, and management raised its long-term automotive outlook to approximately $7 billion. Qualcomm Q3 2026 earnings call highlights
• Positive Sentiment: BMW named Qualcomm its lead compute-silicon provider for future digital cockpit and advanced driver-assistance platforms, supporting potentially recurring automotive revenue through the next decade. Qualcomm wins BMW chip supply deal
• Positive Sentiment: The completed acquisition of Modular expands Qualcomm’s AI software capabilities and could help the company build an AI-computing business spanning data centers, edge infrastructure and personal devices. Qualcomm completes acquisition of Modular
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst views remain mixed: Rosenblatt lowered its price target to $235 but retained a “buy” rating, while Morgan Stanley cut its target to $220 and maintained an “equal weight” rating. Erste Group also made only modest changes to its EPS forecasts.
• Negative Sentiment: Fourth-quarter EPS guidance of $2.05–$2.25 was below the $2.23 consensus midpoint comparison, while revenue guidance of $9.7 billion–$10.5 billion was broadly in line. The cautious outlook was attributed to higher memory costs and supply constraints. Qualcomm shares slide on higher costs
• Negative Sentiment: Third-quarter EPS of $2.21 narrowly missed the $2.23 consensus and fell from $2.77 a year earlier, while revenue declined 4% year over year. Handset revenue reportedly dropped about 20%, highlighting continued smartphone weakness. Qualcomm handset revenue declines
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are also concerned about a steeper decline in Apple-related revenue, adding pressure to Qualcomm’s licensing and chip businesses and clouding the pace of profit recovery. Qualcomm Apple-related weakness

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on QCOM. Raymond James Financial started coverage on Qualcomm in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. They issued a “strong-buy” rating for the company. Guggenheim set a $200.00 price target on Qualcomm in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Daiwa Securities Group upgraded Qualcomm from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $225.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, May 8th. Melius Research set a $220.00 price target on Qualcomm in a report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Freedom Capital cut Qualcomm from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, twenty-one have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Qualcomm presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $216.07.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Heather S. Ace sold 3,200 shares of Qualcomm stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.82, for a total transaction of $569,024.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 39,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,065,677.70. The trade was a 7.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Patricia Y. Grech sold 829 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.77, for a total value of $167,267.33. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 21,529 shares of company stock valued at $4,011,441. Company insiders own 0.05% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Qualcomm

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in Qualcomm by 116.6% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 17,356 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $2,666,000 after buying an additional 9,343 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Qualcomm by 15.4% during the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,542 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $391,000 after buying an additional 340 shares in the last quarter. Invenio Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Qualcomm by 8.3% in the 3rd quarter. Invenio Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,069 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $344,000 after buying an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Wexford Capital LP boosted its stake in shares of Qualcomm by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wexford Capital LP now owns 1,910 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $318,000 after buying an additional 158 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clark Capital Management Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Qualcomm by 17.0% in the third quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. now owns 1,759 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $293,000 after acquiring an additional 255 shares in the last quarter. 74.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Qualcomm

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.