Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) Downgraded by Scotiabank to "Sector Perform"

Scotiabank downgraded shares of Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA - Free Report) from a sector outperform rating to a sector perform rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has $44.50 target price on the cable giant's stock, down from their previous target price of $48.00.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Seaport Res Ptn raised Comcast from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. BNP Paribas upgraded Comcast from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $35.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target 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. Pivotal Research increased their price objective on shares of Comcast from $47.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities restated a "neutral" rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of Comcast in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Ten investment 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $44.13.

Comcast Price Performance

Comcast stock traded up $0.39 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $33.94. 33,488,573 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 27,844,033. Comcast has a 1 year low of $32.50 and a 1 year high of $45.31. The company has a market capitalization of $129.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.00. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $38.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $39.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.68.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The cable giant reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.08. Comcast had a return on equity of 19.98% and a net margin of 13.09%. On average, analysts anticipate that Comcast will post 4.4 EPS for the current year.

Comcast Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be issued a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 2nd. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.89%. This is an increase from Comcast's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Comcast's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.88%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related 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 directly owns 534,849 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,779,218.91. This trade represents a 4.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Brian L. Roberts sold 234,464 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 6,669,928 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $284,539,128.48. This represents a 3.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Comcast

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Comcast by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 30,584 shares of the cable giant's stock valued at $1,277,000 after acquiring an additional 249 shares during the last quarter. Taurus Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Comcast by 2.9% during the third quarter. Taurus Asset Management LLC now owns 9,125 shares of the cable giant's stock valued at $381,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Comcast by 3.1% in the third quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,445 shares of the cable giant's stock valued at $353,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the period. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Comcast by 4.7% in the third quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,829 shares of the cable giant's stock worth $243,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Saxon Interests Inc. grew its stake in Comcast by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Saxon Interests Inc. now owns 13,554 shares of the cable giant's stock valued at $566,000 after buying an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. 84.32% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Comcast

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.