Chip stock Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) rolled out an impressive new development today and one that likely won’t bode well for Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL). In fact, thanks to this new move, Apple’s upcoming Vision Pro headset may only have a first-mover advantage, and not for long. Despite this, however, Qualcomm stock is down fractionally in Thursday afternoon’s trading.
The latest chip from Qualcomm will have an exciting new target: the mixed reality devices to come from Samsung and Alphabet’s (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Google arm. Both of these, not surprisingly, will likely find themselves hotly competing with Apple’s upcoming Vision Pro, and that means Qualcomm may have landed a new line of business. The partnership between the three goes back to last year, and it’s likely that the Samsung/Google designs will be less expensive than their Apple counterpart.
A Look Under the Hood
The chip is known as the Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2, and it will open up access to 4.3K resolution at a 90Hz refresh rate. That makes not only room-sized screens possible but also complete virtual desktops. Passthrough camera quality is also expected to improve, and that opens up a range of new options as well. If Samsung and Google can bring out headsets that can match Apple on quality but at a lower price point, it’s a safe bet where more users will go.
What is the Price Target for QCOM?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus rating on QCOM stock based on 13 Buys, six Holds, and one Sell assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 28.23% rally in its share price over the past year, the average QCOM price target of $140.06 per share implies 2.65% upside potential.
