Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (AMD)vs QUALCOMM Incorporated (QCOM)

Quick verdict

The striking feature of this pairing is that the size gap sits entirely in the market's valuation, not in the business. Revenue is within touching distance — $41.3bn for AMD in the twelve months to June 2026 against $44.1bn for Qualcomm in the twelve months to June 2026 — yet at the 4 September 2026 close AMD carried a market capitalisation of $779.6bn versus Qualcomm's $177.2bn, roughly four times larger on near-identical sales. Qualcomm converts that similar revenue into more profit ($9.3bn net income against AMD's $6.4bn) and more free cash flow ($10.4bn against $8.4bn). Our factor verdicts give Qualcomm valuation, quality and income, AMD growth and the balance sheet, with momentum too close to call. On aggregate scoring Qualcomm edges it at 3.5 against 2.5 — a mature cash-returner against a growth-priced blend.

At-a-glance comparison

Business model and revenue mix

Two different routes into the same industry. AMD designs CPUs, GPUs and adaptive chips for PCs, servers, games consoles and data-centre AI, selling silicon into markets where a product cycle can reprice the whole company. Qualcomm pairs a chip business — Snapdragon mobile and automotive processors — with a licensing arm that collects a royalty on handset sales, a stream tied to the volume of phones shipped rather than to who wins a given socket. That mix shows in the margins: Qualcomm's 23.2% operating margin and 21.0% net margin on $44.1bn of revenue compare with AMD's 15.7% and 15.6% on $41.3bn, while gross margins are close (54.2% versus 53.2%). Both report a genuine operating-income line, so no proxy is needed. Both are US-listed on Nasdaq in the semiconductor industry; their fiscal years differ, AMD ending in December and Qualcomm in September.

Valuation

On every multiple in the data, Qualcomm is the cheaper share and the verdict goes to it. At the 4 September 2026 close Qualcomm traded at 19.3 times trailing earnings, 4.0 times sales, 6.4 times book and 15.8 times EV/EBITDA, with a free cash flow yield of 5.9%. AMD stood at 122.5 times earnings, 18.9 times sales, 11.6 times book and 111.0 times EV/EBITDA, for a free cash flow yield of 1.1%. The gap is not a rounding difference — it is the market paying several times as much per dollar of AMD's revenue and cash flow. AMD's PEG of 2.62 tempers the headline P/E somewhat by crediting expected growth, but no equivalent figure is available for Qualcomm. Anyone buying AMD here is paying for future data-centre economics rather than the twelve months just reported.

Growth profile

Here the direction of travel reverses, and AMD takes the verdict. From fiscal 2022 to fiscal 2025 AMD compounded revenue at 13.6% a year, and from fiscal 2020 to fiscal 2025 at 28.8% — the longer measure capturing the console and data-centre expansion. Its 46.7% three-year EPS CAGR over the same fiscal 2022 to 2025 window is flattered by a weak starting point, which is why the five-year figure from fiscal 2020 is only 5.2%; both belong in the picture. Qualcomm's record is the mirror image: 13.5% annual revenue growth from fiscal 2020 to fiscal 2025, but effectively flat at 0.06% a year from fiscal 2022, and earnings per share down 23.9% a year over that three-year span against a modest 2.1% five-year rate. Recent momentum sits clearly with AMD.

Profitability and quality

Quality goes to Qualcomm, and the returns data explains why. Qualcomm earned a 33.8% return on equity and 23.2% return on invested capital in the twelve months to June 2026, against AMD's 10.1% and 8.5%. Part of the equity-based gap reflects balance-sheet shape — AMD carries $67.2bn of shareholders' equity from acquisition accounting versus Qualcomm's $27.7bn — so ROIC is the fairer read, and Qualcomm still leads by a wide margin there. Operating profit of $10.2bn on $44.1bn of revenue beats AMD's $6.5bn on $41.3bn, and free cash flow of $10.4bn exceeds reported net income, a sign of clean conversion. AMD's $8.4bn of free cash flow against $6.4bn of net income is also healthy in absolute terms; the difference is what each business earns on the capital tied up in it.

Balance-sheet risk

Financial structure is where AMD wins. As at 27 June 2026 it held $5.1bn of cash against $3.2bn of total debt, leaving net debt to EBITDA at -0.27 times — a net cash position — with a current ratio of 2.61 and interest cover of 44.1 times. Qualcomm, as at 28 June 2026, held $4.5bn of cash against $13.3bn of debt, for net debt of 0.74 times EBITDA, a current ratio of 2.02 and interest cover of 14.8 times. Neither set of figures suggests strain: 0.74 times leverage is modest and fourteen-fold interest cover is ample. The distinction is one of flexibility rather than risk — AMD has no net borrowings to service, which matters in a business whose earnings swing with product cycles, while Qualcomm's borrowings sit alongside a steadier royalty stream.

Price performance and shareholder returns

Income is a one-sided comparison. Qualcomm paid $3.59 per share over the twelve months to June 2026, a 2.13% yield at the 4 September close, from 41.3% of earnings — leaving room for the dividend to be maintained through a soft patch. It also retired stock at a 5.22% buyback yield, a substantial return on top of the cash dividend and consistent with 1.05bn shares outstanding. AMD pays no dividend at all, with a payout ratio of zero, and its buyback yield of 0.04% is negligible against 1.63bn shares in issue; capital is being retained for the business. For an investor who needs cash from the holding, only one of these two provides it, and Qualcomm's combined dividend and buyback yield is the clearest single difference between the pair.

Which stock fits which investor

Style tags capture it: Qualcomm is the mature name, AMD the blend. Investors weighing price against present-day earnings will find little to work with in AMD at 122.5 times trailing profit and a 1.1% free cash flow yield; Qualcomm at 19.3 times and 5.9% is the value and income choice, and its 23.2% ROIC makes it the quality choice too. Those prepared to underwrite the next several years rather than the last twelve will prefer AMD's 13.6% three-year revenue CAGR to Qualcomm's 0.06%, and its net cash balance sheet gives that bet a margin of safety Qualcomm's 0.74 times leverage does not. Momentum between them is a genuine tie. On our aggregate scoring Qualcomm takes it 3.5 to 2.5, but the two are answering different questions rather than competing on one.

• Value: QCOM
• Growth: AMD
• Income: QCOM
• Quality: QCOM

Frequently asked questions

Why is AMD worth so much more than Qualcomm when their revenues are similar?

Revenue is close — $41.3bn for AMD and $44.1bn for Qualcomm in the twelve months to June 2026 — but at the 4 September 2026 close AMD's market capitalisation was $779.6bn against Qualcomm's $177.2bn. The difference sits in the multiples: AMD trades at 18.9 times sales and 122.5 times earnings, Qualcomm at 4.0 times and 19.3 times.

Which of the two is more profitable?

Qualcomm, on every measure in the data. It converted $44.1bn of revenue into $10.2bn of operating profit (a 23.2% margin) and $9.3bn of net income, versus AMD's $6.5bn operating profit (15.7%) and $6.4bn net income on $41.3bn. Gross margins are nearly level at 54.2% and 53.2%.

Does either company pay a dividend?

Only Qualcomm. It paid $3.59 per share over the twelve months to June 2026, yielding 2.13% at the 4 September close, using 41.3% of earnings, and added a 5.22% buyback yield. AMD pays nothing and its buyback yield is 0.04%.

Is AMD's 46.7% earnings growth rate reliable?

Treat it with care. That figure runs from fiscal 2022 to fiscal 2025 and starts from a depressed base; measured from fiscal 2020 to fiscal 2025 the EPS CAGR is 5.2%. Revenue growth is the steadier guide at 13.6% over three years and 28.8% over five.

Which has the stronger balance sheet?

AMD. As at 27 June 2026 it held $5.1bn cash against $3.2bn debt — net debt to EBITDA of -0.27 times, meaning net cash — with interest cover of 44.1 times. Qualcomm carried $13.3bn of debt against $4.5bn cash, or 0.74 times EBITDA, still modest.

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