Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) Stock Price Up 9.3% – What’s Next?

Posted by Brian Himes on Sep 23rd, 2026

Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM – Get Free Report) was up 9.3% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $195.31 and last traded at $194.23. 18,206,548 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 16% from the average session volume of 15,722,643 shares. The stock had previously closed at $177.72.

Trending Headlines about Qualcomm

Here are the key news stories impacting Qualcomm this week:

Positive Sentiment: Qualcomm introduced the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 and Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6, flagship mobile processors designed to support on-device and “agentic” AI features. The launch reinforces Qualcomm’s position in premium Android smartphones and could support chip-content growth as handset makers add more AI capabilities. Qualcomm launches two new smartphone chips with emphasis on AI
Positive Sentiment: Investor enthusiasm was further supported by Qualcomm’s demonstration of a high-speed optical die-to-die interconnect with Lumentum and Corning. The technology could help connect AI processors across server racks, broadening Qualcomm’s growth story into data-center and AI infrastructure markets rather than relying primarily on handsets. Lumentum, Qualcomm, Corning to Showcase Optical D2D Interconnect for AI
Positive Sentiment: Chief Financial Officer and COO Akash Palkhiwala highlighted the growing “race to the edge,” where AI processing occurs on devices instead of exclusively in cloud data centers. This supports Qualcomm’s strategy of monetizing AI through smartphones, automobiles, industrial devices and other edge-computing applications. Qualcomm CFO on Snapdragon and Two New Mobile Platforms
Neutral Sentiment: Qualcomm is scheduled to pay its regular dividend this week, providing a modest shareholder-return catalyst, although the payment itself does not change the company’s underlying earnings outlook. Qualcomm to pay dividends this week
Negative Sentiment: Risks remain: the smartphone market is facing sharply higher memory prices, while Qualcomm’s latest quarterly revenue declined year over year and earnings slightly missed consensus. Some analysts also argue that the AI opportunity may be smaller than current investor optimism implies, leaving the stock vulnerable if new data-center and automotive businesses do not scale as expected. Qualcomm releases Android chip built for AI as memory shortage weighs on smartphone market

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

QCOM has been the topic of several analyst reports. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating on shares of Qualcomm in a research note on Wednesday, September 9th. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on Qualcomm in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. They issued a “strong-buy” rating for the company. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $235.00 price objective on shares of Qualcomm in a research note on Wednesday, September 9th. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on shares of Qualcomm in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $190.00 target price for the company. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Qualcomm from $198.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, twenty-one have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $204.10.

Check Out Our Latest Report on QCOM

Qualcomm Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $206.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.70, a PEG ratio of 4.05 and a beta of 1.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 2.02. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $168.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $173.25.

Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The wireless technology company reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.23 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $9.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.69 billion. Qualcomm had a net margin of 21.01% and a return on equity of 38.36%. The firm’s revenue was down 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.77 EPS. Qualcomm has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 2.050-2.250 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Qualcomm Incorporated will post 7.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Qualcomm Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.92 per share. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 3rd. Qualcomm’s dividend payout ratio is 42.59%.

Insider Activity

In other Qualcomm news, EVP Heather S. Ace sold 3,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.04, for a total value of $470,528.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 36,535 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,372,106.40. This represents a 8.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Patricia Y. Grech sold 208 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $35,360.00. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 11,533 shares of company stock worth $1,924,969 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.05% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Qualcomm

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp increased its stake in Qualcomm by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 52,763,263 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $9,750,123,000 after purchasing an additional 671,537 shares in the last quarter. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA lifted its stake in shares of Qualcomm by 35.9% in the second quarter. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA now owns 26,140 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $4,830,000 after buying an additional 6,900 shares in the last quarter. Talon Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Qualcomm by 14.3% during the second quarter. Talon Private Wealth LLC now owns 14,498 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $2,679,000 after buying an additional 1,819 shares during the last quarter. ABS Direct Equity Fund LLC bought a new stake in shares of Qualcomm during the second quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Bouchey Financial Group Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Qualcomm during the second quarter worth about $268,000. 74.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Qualcomm Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM) is a technology company that develops wireless communications technologies, semiconductors and related intellectual property. Headquartered in San Diego, California, the company serves customers and partners worldwide across the mobile, automotive, consumer electronics and industrial markets.

Through its Qualcomm CDMA Technologies (QCT) business, Qualcomm designs and supplies integrated circuits, system software and hardware platforms. Its products include Snapdragon mobile platforms, 5G and other wireless modems, radio-frequency components, connectivity solutions, processors and artificial intelligence technologies.