Why Qualcomm Stock Popped Today

Qualcomm jumped 3.65% after unveiling aggressive growth targets at its 2026 Investor Day, driven by a major AI push. The chipmaker announced its Dragonfly C1000 CPU designed specifically for agentic AI workloads, with Meta Platforms already locked in as a customer.

The company doubled its non-handset revenue forecast, now targeting $40 billion by fiscal 2029. Management also set an adjusted earnings per share target above $18. The announcements signal Qualcomm's strategic pivot beyond its core smartphone chip business into higher-margin AI infrastructure and data center markets.

The Meta partnership provides immediate validation for the Dragonfly platform and positions Qualcomm to compete more directly with Nvidia and AMD in AI compute. The non-handset revenue target represents a fundamental shift in the company's business mix, reducing dependence on cyclical smartphone demand.