Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Reduces Stock Position in QUALCOMM Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System trimmed its holdings in shares of QUALCOMM Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM) by 4.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 140,900 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock after selling 6,800 shares during the quarter. QUALCOMM accounts for approximately 0.4% of Louisiana State Employees Retirement System’s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System’s holdings in QUALCOMM were worth $21,645,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in QUALCOMM during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. CKW Financial Group purchased a new position in shares of QUALCOMM in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Planning Capital Management Corp increased its position in shares of QUALCOMM by 137.3% during the 3rd quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp now owns 197 shares of the wireless technology company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc purchased a new stake in QUALCOMM during the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in QUALCOMM in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Institutional investors own 74.35% of the company’s stock.

QUALCOMM Stock Performance

Shares of QUALCOMM stock opened at $171.99 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $190.22 billion, a PE ratio of 18.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $162.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $165.53. QUALCOMM Incorporated has a one year low of $148.41 and a one year high of $230.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 2.62.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.93 by ($0.07). QUALCOMM had a return on equity of 39.51% and a net margin of 25.94%. Research analysts expect that QUALCOMM Incorporated will post 9.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

QUALCOMM Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.98%. QUALCOMM’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.32%.

Insider Transactions at QUALCOMM

In related news, insider Alexander H. Rogers sold 19,287 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.83, for a total value of $3,275,511.21. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 20,762 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,526,010.46. This trade represents a 48.16 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Ann C. Chaplin sold 7,717 shares of QUALCOMM stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.59, for a total transaction of $1,239,273.03. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now owns 17,153 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,754,600.27. This trade represents a 31.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 44,268 shares of company stock valued at $7,276,381 in the last quarter. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on QCOM. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of QUALCOMM from $200.00 to $185.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $160.00 price target on shares of QUALCOMM in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of QUALCOMM from $245.00 to $215.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Susquehanna dropped their target price on QUALCOMM from $230.00 to $210.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of QUALCOMM in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $205.32.

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.