Top Investment Advisor Makes Big Sale of Well Known Semiconductor Stock, According to Latest Filing

On October 10, 2025, CCM Investment Advisers reported selling 78,543 shares of QUALCOMM (NASDAQ:QCOM), an estimated $12.46 million trade based on average pricing for the quarter ended September 30, 2025, according to its SEC filing.

What Happened

According to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission dated October 10, 2025, CCM Investment Advisers sold 78,543 shares of QUALCOMM in Q3 2025. The estimated transaction value was $12.46 million, based on average pricing for Q3 2025. Following the trade, the fund held 9,912 shares of QUALCOMM, valued at $1.65 million as of September 30, 2025.

What Else to Know

This was a partial sale; QUALCOMM now represents 0.16% of CCM Investment Advisers’ 13F assets under management as of September 30, 2025.

Top holdings after the filing:

• NVDA: $40.55 million (4.0% of AUM) as of September 30, 2025
• GOOGL: $36.30 million (3.58% of AUM) as of September 30, 2025
• AVGO: $36.12 million (3.57% of AUM) as of September 30, 2025
• MSFT: $33.70 million (3.33% of AUM) as of September 30, 2025
• AAPL: $32.84 million (3.24% of AUM) as of September 30, 2025

As of October 9, 2025, QUALCOMM shares were priced at $165.66, down 2.7% over the previous 12 months. Shares of the company have underperformed the S&P 500 by 15.3 percentage points in the past year.

Company Overview

Company Snapshot

QUALCOMM Incorporated is a leading provider of wireless technology solutions, focusing on advanced semiconductors and intellectual property for mobile, automotive, and IoT markets. Its diversified business model leverages both product sales and high-margin licensing revenues, enabling broad exposure to global technology adoption cycles. The company's strong patent portfolio and leadership in 5G standards position it as a critical enabler of next-generation connectivity worldwide.

The company offers integrated circuits, system software, and intellectual property for 3G/4G/5G wireless communications, application processors, and related technologies. It generates revenue through the sale of semiconductor products and licensing of patented technologies to device manufacturers.

QUALCOMM serves global original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), mobile device makers, and technology companies in wireless, automotive, IoT, and related sectors.

Foolish Take

CCM Investment Advisers' decision to drastically reduce its stake in QUALCOMM could be significant. Here's why.

CCM sold about 78,000 shares of QUALCOMM during the third quarter -- amounting to just shy of 90% of its total stake. CCM now holds fewer than 10,000 shares of QUALCOMM, as opposed to the nearly 90,000 it held at the end of June.

That's an enormous reduction, and, perhaps more importantly, it follows a period where QUALCOMM stock has underperformed the S&P 500.

Over the last year, shares of QUALCOMM have generated a total return of (8%) versus a total return of 14% for the S&P 500. That means it's possible that CCM has soured on QUALCOMM and reduced its stake accordingly.

At any rate, retail investors may want to learn from this institutional sale. While many semiconductor companies like Nvidia, AMD, and Intel have outperformed the S&P 500 over the last year, thanks to their ties to the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution, QUALCOMM has lagged.

Therefore, investors with an interest in the semiconductor industry may want to consider the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH), which can act as an alternative to QUALCOMM. The SMH offers some of the upside of semiconductor high-flyers like Nvidia and AMD, while still providing much-needed diversification.

Glossary

AUM (Assets Under Management): The total market value of investments managed by a fund or investment adviser.
13F assets: Securities holdings reported by institutional investment managers in quarterly SEC Form 13F filings.
Partial sale: Selling only a portion of a fund's holding in a particular security, not the entire position.
Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM): A company that produces parts or equipment used in another company's end products.
Licensing revenues: Income earned from granting others the right to use patented technologies or intellectual property.
Patent portfolio: The collection of patents owned by a company, often used to generate licensing income or protect technology.
Quarter (Q3, Q4, etc.): A three-month period in a company's financial year, used for reporting and analysis.
TTM: The 12-month period ending with the most recent quarterly report.
Dividend Yield: A financial ratio showing how much a company pays in dividends relative to its share price.
System software: Software that manages hardware and basic system operations, enabling other applications to run.
Application processor: A central chip in mobile devices that handles running apps and system functions.
High-margin: Refers to products or services that generate a large profit relative to their cost.

Jake Lerch has positions in Alphabet and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Advanced Micro Devices, Alphabet, Apple, Intel, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Qualcomm. The Motley Fool recommends Broadcom and recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft, short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft, and short November 2025 $21 puts on Intel. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.