Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) Shares Sold by Howard Bailey Securities LLC

Howard Bailey Securities LLC lowered its stake in shares of Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) by 11.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 8,287 shares of the cable giant’s stock after selling 1,048 shares during the period. Howard Bailey Securities LLC’s holdings in Comcast were worth $311,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. World Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Comcast by 904.0% during the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 254,545 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $10,632,000 after purchasing an additional 229,192 shares during the period. Robinson Value Management Ltd. boosted its stake in Comcast by 136.7% during the fourth quarter. Robinson Value Management Ltd. now owns 102,360 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $3,842,000 after buying an additional 59,107 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Comcast by 15.2% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 171,440 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $7,161,000 after acquiring an additional 22,684 shares during the last quarter. Private Management Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Comcast by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 855,787 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $32,118,000 after acquiring an additional 24,827 shares during the period. Finally, Parnassus Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Comcast by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 1,920,800 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $80,232,000 after acquiring an additional 68,139 shares during the last quarter. 84.32% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Comcast Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of CMCSA opened at $34.90 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $131.96 billion, a PE ratio of 8.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company’s fifty day moving average is $37.38 and its two-hundred day moving average is $39.82. Comcast Co. has a fifty-two week low of $32.50 and a fifty-two week high of $45.31.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The cable giant reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.08. Comcast had a return on equity of 19.98% and a net margin of 13.09%. Analysts forecast that Comcast Co. will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Comcast Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.78%. This is a boost from Comcast’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 2nd. Comcast’s dividend payout ratio is 29.88%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Brian L. Roberts sold 234,464 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.66, for a total transaction of $10,002,234.24. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 6,669,928 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $284,539,128.48. This trade represents a 3.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, President Michael J. Cavanagh sold 25,537 shares of Comcast stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.59, for a total value of $1,087,620.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 534,849 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,779,218.91. The trade was a 4.56 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.26% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America downgraded shares of Comcast from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $50.00 to $38.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Benchmark decreased their price target on shares of Comcast from $57.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on Comcast from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Seaport Res Ptn raised Comcast from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded Comcast from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $35.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $44.13.

Comcast Profile

Comcast Corporation operates as a media and technology company worldwide. It operates through Residential Connectivity & Platforms, Business Services Connectivity, Media, Studios, and Theme Parks segments. The Residential Connectivity & Platforms segment provides residential broadband and wireless connectivity services, residential and business video services, sky-branded entertainment television networks, and advertising.