Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) Stock Holdings Lessened by Principal Securities Inc.

Principal Securities Inc. cut its stake in shares of Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) by 5.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 122,346 shares of the cable giant’s stock after selling 6,884 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc.’s holdings in Comcast were worth $4,592,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Winch Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Comcast by 269.9% in the 4th quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 688 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 502 shares in the last quarter. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Comcast in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Comcast in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Comcast by 365.4% during the 3rd quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 726 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 570 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new position in shares of Comcast during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.32% of the company’s stock.

Comcast Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CMCSA opened at $35.39 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $133.81 billion, a PE ratio of 8.53, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. Comcast Co. has a 1-year low of $32.50 and a 1-year high of $45.31. The business’s 50 day moving average is $36.93 and its 200-day moving average is $39.71.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The cable giant reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.08. Comcast had a net margin of 13.09% and a return on equity of 19.98%. Sell-side analysts predict 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. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. This is a boost from Comcast’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 2nd. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.73%. Comcast’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.88%.

Insider Activity

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

CMCSA has been the topic of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Comcast from $45.00 to $38.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Comcast from $45.00 to $37.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. KeyCorp upped their target price on Comcast from $44.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. BNP Paribas raised shares of Comcast from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $35.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Comcast from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.