QUALCOMM (NASDAQ:QCOM) vs. ASE Technology (NYSE:ASX) Head-To-Head Contrast

QUALCOMM (NASDAQ:QCOM) and ASE Technology (NYSE:ASX) are both large-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, analyst recommendations, risk, institutional ownership, valuation, dividends and profitability.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

74.4% of QUALCOMM shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 6.8% of ASE Technology shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.1% of QUALCOMM shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 22.9% of ASE Technology shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Risk & Volatility

QUALCOMM has a beta of 1.21, suggesting that its stock price is 21% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, ASE Technology has a beta of 1.34, suggesting that its stock price is 34% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares QUALCOMM and ASE Technology’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
QUALCOMM	26.77%	40.35%	19.74%
ASE Technology	5.48%	10.33%	4.56%

Dividends

QUALCOMM pays an annual dividend of $3.56 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.1%. ASE Technology pays an annual dividend of $0.26 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. QUALCOMM pays out 34.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. ASE Technology pays out 55.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. QUALCOMM has raised its dividend for 23 consecutive years.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations for QUALCOMM and ASE Technology, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
QUALCOMM	1	10	12	1	2.54
ASE Technology	0	0	1	0	3.00

QUALCOMM currently has a consensus target price of $182.82, indicating a potential upside of 7.74%. Given QUALCOMM’s higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe QUALCOMM is more favorable than ASE Technology.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares QUALCOMM and ASE Technology”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
QUALCOMM	$38.96 billion	4.70	$10.14 billion	$10.37	16.36
ASE Technology	$18.54 billion	1.36	$987.46 million	$0.47	24.37

QUALCOMM has higher revenue and earnings than ASE Technology. QUALCOMM is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than ASE Technology, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

QUALCOMM beats ASE Technology on 13 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

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. The QTL segment grants licenses or provides rights to use portions of its intellectual property portfolio, which include various patent rights useful in the manufacture and sale of wireless products comprising products implementing CDMA2000, WCDMA, LTE and/or OFDMA-based 5G standards and their derivatives. The QSI segment invests in early-stage companies in various industries, including 5G, artificial intelligence, automotive, consumer, enterprise, cloud, IoT, and extended reality, and investments, including non-marketable equity securities and, to a lesser extent, marketable equity securities, and convertible debt instruments. It also provides development, and other services and related products to the United States government agencies and their contractors. The company was incorporated in 1985 and is headquartered in San Diego, California.

About ASE Technology

ASE Technology Holding Co., Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, provides semiconductors packaging and testing, and electronic manufacturing services in the United States, Taiwan, Asia, Europe, and internationally. It develops, constructs, sells, leases, and manages real estate properties; produces substrates; offers information software, equipment leasing, investment advisory, and warehousing management services; commercial complex, after-sales, and support services; manages parking lot services; processes and sells computer and communication peripherals, electronic components, telecommunications equipment, and motherboards; and imports and exports goods and technology. ASE Technology Holding Co., Ltd. was founded in 1984 and is based in Kaohsiung, Taiwan.