Benzinga | Jul 19, 2021 08:36AM EDT

Goldman Sachs Upgrades Qualcomm To Neutral, Increased Price Target Signifies 6% Upside

* Goldman Sachs analyst Rod Hall upgraded Qualcomm Inc (NASDAQ:QCOM) to Neutral from Sell with a price target of $148, up from $136, implying a 5.93% upside.

* Qualcomm is poised to benefit from multiple tailwinds in the second half of 2021, including an earlier Apple Inc's (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone launch and improving supply situation, Hall believes.

* He raised the company's handsets segment estimates to reflect updated handset market expectations, including Huawei Technologies Co, Ltd's share shift to Qualcomm.

* Hall sees Qualcomm likely reporting substantial chip numbers in the second half from higher iPhone builds and improved Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd's (NYSE:TSM) capacity availability.

* Price action: QCOM shares traded lower by 0.26% at $139.35 in the premarket session on the last check Monday.