Each year Steven Halpern, editor of TheStockAdvisors.com, surveys the leading financial newsletter advisors asking for their favorite stocks for the coming year. This article is part of his 24th annual Top Picks Report.

Qualcomm Inc. (NASDAQ: QCOM) is the favorite conservative stock selection from wireless and telecom industry analyst Nikhil Hutheesing, editor of The Forbes Wireless Stock Watch.

He notes, "From May through August of 2006, shares of Qualcomm fell by 37%, spurred in large measure by Finnish mobile phone maker Nokia announcing in June that it would stop making cell phones based on Qualcomm's CDMA (code division multiple access) technology, which it licenses to manufacturers of wireless equipment.

"Qualcomm refused to buckle under pressure from Nokia to reduce its licensing fees and the two companies are now in talks about extending the current licensing agreements, which end in April. If there is no extension, Nokia could stop paying Qualcomm about $500 million in fees annually.

"Also lingering over the company has been a bitter patent dispute battle with Irvine, California-based Broadcom. In October, a judge ruled against Qualcomm in the dispute over one particular patent, saying that Qualcomm violated parts of the patent that help cell phones conserve battery power when out of network coverage. Qualcomm said it would appeal the decision -- the final determination comes next year.

"While these issues still put pressure on the stock, I think that the Nokia and Broadcom news has been priced into Qualcomm's shares. Once the issues are resolved, investors will return their focus to increased demand for Qualcomm's technology as new, high-speed wireless networks are deployed around the world.

"Qualcomm is also working hard to expand its business, announcing in December that it will buy privately held Airgo Networks, which makes Wi-Fi chipsets for laptops. In addition, Qualcomm said it would spend $39 million to purchase most of RF Micro Devices' Bluetooth assets.

"The plan is to integrate these technologies into the company's 3G chipsets for mobile phones, as well as the wireless chips that go into laptops and other electronic products. Overall, I like Qualcomm's fundamentals, especially its minimal debt and $6 billion in cash. My price target is $60."

To see Nikhil's favorite wireless speculation for 2007, click here.