Qualcomm Stock Surges on Strong Earnings and Strategic Shifts Qualcomm Incorporated stock surged over 8.8% in pre-open trading on May 11, 2026, driven by a strong fiscal second-quarter earnings report and renewed investor confidence in the company’s long-term growth prospects. The rally followed Qualcomm’s April 29 earnings release, which showed the company exceeded expectations with $2.65 earnings per share, surpassing analyst forecasts of $2.56, and reported revenue of $10.60 billion, slightly above the $10.59 billion consensus estimate. CEO Cristiano Amon highlighted a key strategic shift during the earnings call, announcing that Qualcomm would begin shipping data center chips to a major hyperscaler within the same calendar year. This development signaled a significant pivot from the company’s traditional focus on mobile handsets to a broader role in AI compute platforms, particularly in data centers and physical AI applications. Analysts viewed this as a game-changer, redefining Qualcomm’s earnings potential and sparking sustained buying interest. The stock’s surge was further amplified by analyst upgrades and revised price targets. Daiwa analyst Louis Miscioscia upgraded Qualcomm to Outperform from Neutral, raising his price target to $225 from $140. Tigress Financial also increased its target to $280 from $270, citing the company’s “increasingly compelling” investment case. Benchmark and Roth MKM joined with buy ratings and higher price targets, reflecting growing optimism about Qualcomm’s diversified revenue streams. On the capital return front, Qualcomm authorized an additional $20 billion for stock repurchases and raised its quarterly dividend from $0.89 to $0.92 per share, signaling confidence in its financial flexibility.#nasdaq #tigress_financial #qualcomm_incorporated #cristiano_amon #hyperscaler
