Washington Trust Advisors Inc. Boosts Stock Position in QUALCOMM Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM)

Washington Trust Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in QUALCOMM Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM) by 36.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,461 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 662 shares during the period. Washington Trust Advisors Inc.’s holdings in QUALCOMM were worth $378,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in QUALCOMM by 1.7% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 51,615,929 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $8,777,289,000 after acquiring an additional 870,814 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in QUALCOMM by 7.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 27,128,468 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $4,600,625,000 after acquiring an additional 1,989,725 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in QUALCOMM by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 9,670,451 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $1,485,575,000 after acquiring an additional 193,236 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in QUALCOMM by 6.3% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 8,356,581 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $1,421,037,000 after acquiring an additional 498,284 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in QUALCOMM by 1.6% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 6,832,693 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $1,213,023,000 after acquiring an additional 110,828 shares during the last quarter. 74.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other QUALCOMM news, CAO Neil Martin sold 744 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.83, for a total transaction of $130,073.52. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 461 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $80,596.63. This trade represents a 61.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Akash J. Palkhiwala sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.80, for a total transaction of $509,400.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 63,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,716,927. This trade represents a 4.54 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 47,045 shares of company stock valued at $7,752,423. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on QCOM. Barclays decreased their price objective on QUALCOMM from $200.00 to $185.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. Loop Capital initiated coverage on QUALCOMM in a research note on Monday, November 11th. They set a “hold” rating and a $180.00 price target on the stock. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on QUALCOMM from $199.00 to $179.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Susquehanna decreased their price target on QUALCOMM from $230.00 to $210.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Melius initiated coverage on QUALCOMM in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They set a “hold” rating and a $180.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $205.32.

QUALCOMM Stock Performance

NASDAQ:QCOM opened at $158.49 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $175.29 billion, a PE ratio of 16.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.25. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $164.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $165.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 2.62 and a quick ratio of 1.99. QUALCOMM Incorporated has a 12 month low of $149.43 and a 12 month high of $230.63.

QUALCOMM (NASDAQ:QCOM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The wireless technology company reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.93 by ($0.07). QUALCOMM had a return on equity of 39.51% and a net margin of 25.94%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that QUALCOMM Incorporated will post 9.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

QUALCOMM Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 6th. QUALCOMM’s payout ratio is 36.32%.

QUALCOMM Profile

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.