Qualcomm (QCOM) Stock Drops as Apple Deal Renewal Raises New Questions

TLDR

• Qualcomm renewed its global patent license agreement with Apple, effective April 1, 2027.
• The stock fell about 2% after the announcement gave few details on deal length.
• Analysts note past renewals included specific terms, making this one’s vagueness stand out.
• Apple’s new C2 modem in the iPhone 18 lineup reduces its reliance on Qualcomm chips.
• Qualcomm still trades up 13% this year, helped by new AI and robotics partnerships.

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Qualcomm stock dropped after the company confirmed a renewed patent licensing deal with Apple. Shares fell 1.5% to $193.41 on Thursday following the announcement.

QUALCOMM Incorporated, QCOM

The deal covers Qualcomm’s global patent license agreement with Apple. It becomes effective April 1, 2027.

John Han, an executive vice president at Qualcomm, called it a positive step for the company. But the announcement lacked specifics on how long the new terms would last.

That absence of detail unsettled some investors. Bernstein analyst Stacy Rasgon pointed out that Qualcomm’s 2019 renewal came with a clear six-year term plus an extension option.

This time, the company shared far less. Rasgon said the lack of specificity “gives us a little bit of pause.”

He still called the news an incremental positive overall. But he added that investors will be listening for more details, possibly at Qualcomm’s next earnings call.

Apple’s Shift Away From Qualcomm Modems

Qualcomm’s modems have powered iPhone cellular connections for years. Apple has been working to change that.

The iPhone 18 Pro, Pro Max, and Duo all launched this month using Apple’s own C2 modem. That’s a change from the iPhone 17, which still relied on Qualcomm hardware.

Building modems in-house typically helps a company’s margins. It also reduces dependence on an outside supplier.

Qualcomm investors have known about this shift for some time. It hasn’t stopped the stock from climbing 13% year-to-date.

Other Business Moves Supporting the Stock

Much of that gain came from Qualcomm’s push into new markets. Shares rose 3.2% earlier this year after the company announced a partnership with Amazon.

Qualcomm has also introduced new chips built for on-device AI processing. The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 and Extreme Gen 6 processors use a 2-nanometer process aimed at premium smartphones.

The company unveiled Snapdragon Sound Elite Gen 2 as well, targeting AI-enabled wearables. That gives Qualcomm another growth path beyond phones.

Qualcomm is also working on a deal to acquire PickNik Robotics. Combined with optical interconnect work alongside Lumentum and Corning, the moves point to a broader push into robotics and data center infrastructure.

Wall Street sentiment on the stock remains split. Qualcomm carries a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $204.10.

Recent analyst calls have varied widely. Zacks Research downgraded the stock to “Strong Sell” on September 15, while DZ Bank raised it to “Buy” with a $265 target back in June.

Qualcomm’s most recent quarterly report showed revenue of $9.95 billion, above analyst estimates of $9.69 billion. Earnings per share came in at $2.21, missing the $2.23 consensus by two cents.

Revenue was down 4% year-over-year. The company has set Q4 2026 EPS guidance between $2.05 and $2.25.

Qualcomm also paid its latest quarterly dividend of $0.92 per share on September 24. That works out to a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%.

CEO Cristiano Amon sold 10,000 shares for $1.95 million earlier this month under a pre-arranged trading plan. Company insiders have sold a combined $3.87 million in stock over the past 90 days.