Qualcomm may provide a muted forecast when the maker of mobile processors and 5G wireless chipsets reports fiscal-third-quarter earnings after the market close.
The Wall Street consensus estimates for Qualcomm (ticker: QCOM) is for the company to report June-quarter revenue of $8.5 billion with adjusted earnings per share of $1.81. Analysts’ estimates for the current quarter are for earnings per share of $1.92 on revenue of $8.7 billion.
Global smartphone demand has been soft. Last week, research firm Canalys said second-quarter worldwide shipments for the mobile phones fell 10% year-over-year. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM) also said last month the smartphone market had deteriorated over the past three months.
As a larger supplier for the mobile market it could be tough for Qualcomm to post strong results over the next few months.
On Monday, Bernstein analyst Stacy Rasgon reiterated his Outperform rating on Qualcomm stock and reaffirmed his $135 price target. But he admitted Qualcomm’s end-market hasn’t rebounded yet.
“Smartphones remain very weak,” he wrote, adding that his estimate for Qualcomm’s September-quarter revenue is $8.5 billion, which is below the current consensus.
While there is uncertainty over the business, Rasgon says Qualcomm’s stock low valuation is attractive if the eventually market recovers.
Qualcomm shares have declined about 11% over the past 12 months, compared with the 30% rise of the iShares Semiconductor exchange-traded fund (SOXX), which tracks the ICE Semiconductor Index.
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