Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) to Buyback $20.00 billion in Stock

Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, March 17th, RTT News reports. The company plans to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the wireless technology company to purchase up to 14.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on QCOM shares. DZ Bank raised shares of Qualcomm to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Qualcomm in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Wall Street Zen cut Qualcomm from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Qualcomm in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $132.00 target price for the company. Finally, Evercore decreased their price objective on shares of Qualcomm from $157.00 to $134.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Qualcomm currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $168.00.

Qualcomm Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:QCOM traded up $2.20 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $131.59. 10,541,094 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,569,214. Qualcomm has a twelve month low of $120.80 and a twelve month high of $205.95. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $147.58 and a 200-day moving average price of $161.96. The stock has a market cap of $140.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.19 and a beta of 1.25.

Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The wireless technology company reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.38 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $12.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.16 billion. Qualcomm had a return on equity of 44.09% and a net margin of 11.96%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.41 earnings per share. Qualcomm has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.450-2.650 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Qualcomm will post 9.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Qualcomm Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 5th will be given a $0.89 dividend. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 5th. Qualcomm’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 73.55%.

Key Headlines Impacting Qualcomm

Here are the key news stories impacting Qualcomm this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Board authorized a new $20 billion share‑repurchase program and boosted the quarterly dividend, a clear signal of capital-return focus that increases EPS support and buy-side demand. Chipmaker Qualcomm unveils $20 billion stock buyback program
• Positive Sentiment: Market reaction: reports show the buyback announcement triggered an immediate uptick in the share price as investors welcomed the large repurchase and dividend hike as shareholder-friendly and value-supportive. Qualcomm (QCOM) Stock Jumps 3% on Massive $20B Share Repurchase Plan
• Positive Sentiment: Bull case reinforced: analysts/commentary argue QCOM is undervalued, and management’s buyback plus dividend increase signals confidence in cash flow and long‑term prospects, supporting upside if automotive and AI investments scale. Why I’m Still Buying Qualcomm
• Neutral Sentiment: Strategic growth: Qualcomm is continuing to invest in automotive and AI (e.g., collaboration to integrate driving stack software/hardware), which diversifies revenue but will take time to offset smartphone headwinds. Qualcomm And Wayve Target Automotive AI Revenue With Integrated Driving Stack
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst pressure: multiple recent downgrades (including Seaport Global) and at least three negative analyst calls in ~60 days highlight concerns around shrinking smartphone TAM, memory supply constraints, and near‑term revenue headwinds. Qualcomm downgraded at Seaport on shrinking market, memory crunch
• Negative Sentiment: Price momentum: recent multi‑day declines and notes that “big money” has stepped back point to investor caution; structural smartphone weakness and short‑term execution risks could keep pressure on the stock despite buybacks. Why Big Money Is Steering Clear Of Qualcomm Stock This Week

Insider Transactions at Qualcomm

In other Qualcomm news, EVP Akash J. Palkhiwala sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.12, for a total transaction of $1,751,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 44,803 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,845,901.36. This trade represents a 18.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Heather S. Ace sold 3,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.00, for a total value of $438,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 16,393 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,245,841. This trade represents a 16.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 22,404 shares of company stock worth $3,672,557. Company insiders own 0.05% of the company’s stock.

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.