QCOM vs. TSEM: QUALCOMM vs. Tower Semiconductor Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do QUALCOMM (QCOM) and Tower Semiconductor (TSEM) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

QUALCOMM (QCOM) and Tower Semiconductor (TSEM) are both classified in the Semiconductors sub-industry within the broader Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry, placing them in the closest GICS peer bucket.

Company profile comparison for QUALCOMM (QCOM) and Tower Semiconductor (TSEM)
Profile Item	QCOM	TSEM
Name	QUALCOMM Incorporated	Tower Semiconductor Ltd.
Country/Region	United States	Israel
GICS Sector	Information Technology	Information Technology
GICS Industry Group	Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment	Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment
GICS Industry	Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment	Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment
GICS Sub-Industry	Semiconductors	Semiconductors
Market Capitalization	176.99 billion USD	15.59 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	Nasdaq	Nasdaq
Listing Date	December 13, 1991	October 26, 1994
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

QCOM

TSEM

GSPC

QUALCOMM (QCOM) vs. Tower Semiconductor (TSEM), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

Loading price history…

Trailing total returns for QUALCOMM (QCOM) and Tower Semiconductor (TSEM). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

Loading price history…

Calendar-year total returns for QUALCOMM (QCOM) and Tower Semiconductor (TSEM). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for QUALCOMM (QCOM) and Tower Semiconductor (TSEM)
Metric	QCOM	TSEM
Total Return (1Y)	4.41%	78.71%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	15.75%	83.79%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	3.17%	32.56%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

QCOM

TSEM

GSPC

QUALCOMM (QCOM) vs. Tower Semiconductor (TSEM), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

Loading price history…

Distribution of monthly total returns for QUALCOMM (QCOM) and Tower Semiconductor (TSEM). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for QUALCOMM (QCOM) and Tower Semiconductor (TSEM)
Metric	QCOM	TSEM
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	55.42%	84.90%
Beta (5Y)	1.73	0.99
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-44.29%	-58.66%
Avg. Volume (3M)	12.25M	2.22M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

QCOM and TSEM are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for QUALCOMM (QCOM) and Tower Semiconductor (TSEM)
Metric	QCOM	TSEM
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.00	0.88
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.00	1.32

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

QUALCOMM (QCOM) at 52.82% sits in the top ROE quartile, while Tower Semiconductor (TSEM) at 11.86% is closer to the peer norm — stronger capital efficiency for QCOM.

QCOM

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

52.82%

QCOM: 52.82%
Max: 52.82%
Q3: 22.26%
Median: 10.58%
Q1: 1.29%
Min: -16.89%

TSEM

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

11.86%

Max: 52.82%
Q3: 22.26%
TSEM: 11.86%
Median: 10.58%
Q1: 1.29%
Min: -16.89%

QUALCOMM (QCOM) vs. Tower Semiconductor (TSEM): A comparison of their ROE against the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

QUALCOMM (QCOM) at 31.61% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Tower Semiconductor (TSEM) at 19.36%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

QCOM

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

31.61%

Max: 63.80%
QCOM: 31.61%
Q3: 28.36%
Median: 11.44%
Q1: 0.90%
Min: -37.77%

TSEM

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

19.36%

Max: 63.80%
Q3: 28.36%
TSEM: 19.36%
Median: 11.44%
Q1: 0.90%
Min: -37.77%

QUALCOMM (QCOM) vs. Tower Semiconductor (TSEM): A comparison of their net margin against the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both QUALCOMM (QCOM) at 15.41% and Tower Semiconductor (TSEM) at 24.16% run core operations about as efficiently as their industries’ norm — neither stands out on operating profitability.

QCOM

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

15.41%

Max: 58.66%
Q3: 30.23%
Median: 15.91%
QCOM: 15.41%
Q1: 7.54%
Min: -25.74%

TSEM

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

24.16%

Max: 58.66%
Q3: 30.23%
TSEM: 24.16%
Median: 15.91%
Q1: 7.54%
Min: -25.74%

QUALCOMM (QCOM) vs. Tower Semiconductor (TSEM): A comparison of their operating margin against the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for QUALCOMM (QCOM) and Tower Semiconductor (TSEM)
Metric	QCOM	TSEM
ROE (TTM)	52.82%	11.86%
ROA (TTM)	10.13%	6.07%
Net Margin (TTM)	31.61%	19.36%
Operating Margin (TTM)	15.41%	24.16%
Gross Margin (TTM)	53.10%	29.62%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Tower Semiconductor (TSEM) at 9.05% is around its peer norm for revenue growth, while QUALCOMM (QCOM) at -2.63% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker demand or pricing momentum.

QUALCOMM (QCOM) vs. Tower Semiconductor (TSEM): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

QUALCOMM (QCOM) at 153.49% clears its industry range for EPS growth, a much stronger earnings trajectory than Tower Semiconductor (TSEM) at 4.86%, which is closer to a typical peer reading.

QUALCOMM (QCOM) vs. Tower Semiconductor (TSEM): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for QUALCOMM (QCOM) and Tower Semiconductor (TSEM)
Metric	QCOM	TSEM
Revenue Growth (YoY)	-2.63%	9.05%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	6.38%	-2.27%
EPS Growth (YoY)	153.49%	4.86%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	25.53%	-6.72%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Tower Semiconductor (TSEM) at 3.72 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while QUALCOMM (QCOM) at 1.86 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for QCOM.

QCOM

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

1.86

Max: 10.33
Q3: 5.62
Median: 3.33
Q1: 2.35
QCOM: 1.86
Min: 1.03

TSEM

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

3.72

Max: 10.33
Q3: 5.62
TSEM: 3.72
Median: 3.33
Q1: 2.35
Min: 1.03

QUALCOMM (QCOM) vs. Tower Semiconductor (TSEM): A comparison of their current ratio against the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both QUALCOMM (QCOM) at 0.53 and Tower Semiconductor (TSEM) at 0.05 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

QCOM

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

0.53

Max: 1.46
Q3: 0.65
QCOM: 0.53
Median: 0.27
Q1: 0.04
Min: 0.00

TSEM

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

0.05

Max: 1.46
Q3: 0.65
Median: 0.27
TSEM: 0.05
Q1: 0.04
Min: 0.00

QUALCOMM (QCOM) vs. Tower Semiconductor (TSEM): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for QUALCOMM (QCOM) and Tower Semiconductor (TSEM)
Metric	QCOM	TSEM
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.86	3.72
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.53	0.05
Net Debt / EBITDA	0.78	-1.92

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Tower Semiconductor (TSEM) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile QUALCOMM (QCOM) reports a yield of 2.31%, ranking against industry peers normally.

QCOM

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

2.31%

QCOM: 2.31%
Max: 1.37%
Q3: 0.65%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

TSEM

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

0.00%

Max: 1.37%
Q3: 0.65%
TSEM: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

QUALCOMM (QCOM) vs. Tower Semiconductor (TSEM): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Tower Semiconductor (TSEM) pays no dividend (payout 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile QUALCOMM (QCOM) reports a payout of 28.50%, ranking against industry peers normally.

QCOM

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

28.50%

Max: 49.64%
QCOM: 28.50%
Q3: 21.71%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

TSEM

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

0.00%

Max: 49.64%
Q3: 21.71%
TSEM: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

QUALCOMM (QCOM) vs. Tower Semiconductor (TSEM): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for QUALCOMM (QCOM) and Tower Semiconductor (TSEM)
Metric	QCOM	TSEM
Dividend Yield (TTM)	2.31%	0.00%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	28.50%	0.00%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

QUALCOMM (QCOM) at 13.02 sits in the cheaper P/E ratio quartile, while Tower Semiconductor (TSEM) at 44.16 is closer to its industry’s usual earnings multiple — a discount for QCOM, though growth and earnings durability still matter.

QCOM

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

13.02

Max: 110.34
Q3: 66.81
Median: 37.02
Q1: 23.96
QCOM: 13.02
Min: 8.12

TSEM

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

44.16

Max: 110.34
Q3: 66.81
TSEM: 44.16
Median: 37.02
Q1: 23.96
Min: 8.12

QUALCOMM (QCOM) vs. Tower Semiconductor (TSEM): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both QUALCOMM (QCOM) at 4.10 and Tower Semiconductor (TSEM) at 8.47 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

QCOM

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

4.10

Max: 21.42
Q3: 12.27
Median: 5.76
QCOM: 4.10
Q1: 2.73
Min: 0.00

TSEM

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

8.47

Max: 21.42
Q3: 12.27
TSEM: 8.47
Median: 5.76
Q1: 2.73
Min: 0.00

QUALCOMM (QCOM) vs. Tower Semiconductor (TSEM): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

On P/B ratio, both QUALCOMM (QCOM) at 5.83 and Tower Semiconductor (TSEM) at 4.85 are valued close to their industries’ norm against book — neither stands out from peers.

QCOM

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

5.83

Max: 14.06
Q3: 7.44
QCOM: 5.83
Median: 4.29
Q1: 2.30
Min: 0.20

TSEM

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

4.85

Max: 14.06
Q3: 7.44
TSEM: 4.85
Median: 4.29
Q1: 2.30
Min: 0.20

QUALCOMM (QCOM) vs. Tower Semiconductor (TSEM): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for QUALCOMM (QCOM) and Tower Semiconductor (TSEM)
Metric	QCOM	TSEM
P/E Ratio (TTM)	13.02	44.16
P/S Ratio (TTM)	4.10	8.47
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	5.83	4.85
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	5.15%	1.59%