Qualcomm buying back US$20 billion in shares, boosts dividend

Published Tue, Mar 17, 2026 · 11:24 PM

[NEW YORK] Qualcomm, the largest maker of smartphone processors, plans to buy back another US$20 billion worth of shares and is raising its quarterly cash dividend as art of a broader effort to bolster shareholder returns while diversifying its business.

The chipmaker’s board has approved the new stock repurchase programme, which adds to previous buybacks announced in November 2024, according to a company statement. The San Diego, California-based company’s quarterly dividend will rise to 92 cents a share from 89 cents after Mar 26. Its annualised dividend payout will increase to US$3.68 a share.

Last month, Qualcomm issued a tepid forecast for revenue, saying a global shortage of memory chips means some of its customers, particularly those in China, will be making fewer handsets.

Chief executive officer Cristiano Amon has been working to transform the company into a more diversified seller of chips for cars, personal computers and data centres, but the new businesses haven’t generated enough to make up for the shortfall in its main market.

The company’s shares were up about 3 per cent at 9.41 am in New York.

Amon said in the company’s statement on Tuesday (Mar 17) that he remains “focused on stockholder returns and executing on our ongoing diversification opportunities.”

Major technology companies are buying up more memory chips than ever before to secure capacity for artificial intelligence systems. That has prompted chipmakers to allocate more of their production to these higher-margin orders, leaving fewer memory chips available for others such as consumer device manufacturers and carmakers. Costs of some memory products have surged as a result.

Qualcomm has been trying to get into the lucrative market for AI data centre components and late last year announced products that will attempt to go directly up against Nvidia’s dominant offerings. It has said that the first shipment of that lineup is expected next year, and the initial customer will be Humain, the AI startup backed by the government of Saudi Arabia. BLOOMBERG