QUALCOMM (NASDAQ:QCOM) Trading 1.1% Higher Following Analyst Upgrade

QUALCOMM Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM)’s share price rose 1.1% during trading on Tuesday after Argus raised their price target on the stock from $180.00 to $205.00. Argus currently has a buy rating on the stock. QUALCOMM traded as high as $184.22 and last traded at $183.86. Approximately 1,228,921 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 86% from the average daily volume of 8,646,998 shares. The stock had previously closed at $181.85.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of QUALCOMM from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of QUALCOMM from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Wolfe Research lifted their price objective on QUALCOMM from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Barclays raised their price target on QUALCOMM from $155.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $200.00 price objective on shares of QUALCOMM in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $180.48.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CTO James H. Thompson sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.00, for a total value of $1,456,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer now owns 253,893 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,208,526. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CTO James H. Thompson sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.00, for a total value of $1,456,000.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer now directly owns 253,893 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $46,208,526. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Cristiano R. Amon sold 8,100 shares of QUALCOMM stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.50, for a total transaction of $1,291,950.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 24,300 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,875,850. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 46,316 shares of company stock worth $7,796,128. Company insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of QUALCOMM

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Berkshire Money Management Inc. purchased a new position in QUALCOMM during the first quarter valued at $356,000. Doheny Asset Management CA increased its holdings in shares of QUALCOMM by 8.0% during the first quarter. Doheny Asset Management CA now owns 17,803 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $3,014,000 after acquiring an additional 1,312 shares in the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of QUALCOMM by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 34,307 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $5,808,000 after purchasing an additional 541 shares during the last quarter. Great Diamond Partners LLC boosted its stake in QUALCOMM by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Great Diamond Partners LLC now owns 3,112 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock worth $527,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC grew its position in QUALCOMM by 20.7% during the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 1,466,915 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $248,349,000 after purchasing an additional 251,417 shares during the last quarter. 74.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

QUALCOMM Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 2.65, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $201.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.33. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $168.62 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $148.09.

QUALCOMM Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 30th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 30th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.88%. This is an increase from QUALCOMM’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. QUALCOMM’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.70%.

About QUALCOMM

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.