Ieq Capital LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA)

Ieq Capital LLC lifted its position in Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA - Free Report) by 47.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 392,329 shares of the cable giant's stock after purchasing an additional 126,546 shares during the period. Ieq Capital LLC's holdings in Comcast were worth $14,724,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Alberta Investment Management Corp lifted its holdings in Comcast by 204.1% during the fourth quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 110,400 shares of the cable giant's stock worth $4,143,000 after buying an additional 74,100 shares during the period. Financial Perspectives Inc lifted its holdings in Comcast by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc now owns 15,322 shares of the cable giant's stock worth $575,000 after buying an additional 712 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Comcast by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 57,842 shares of the cable giant's stock worth $2,171,000 after buying an additional 721 shares during the period. Convergence Investment Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Comcast by 16.5% during the fourth quarter. Convergence Investment Partners LLC now owns 34,482 shares of the cable giant's stock worth $1,294,000 after buying an additional 4,890 shares during the period. Finally, Atlas Legacy Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Comcast during the fourth quarter worth $218,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.32% of the company's stock.

Comcast Price Performance

CMCSA stock traded down $0.16 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $36.26. The company's stock had a trading volume of 21,402,835 shares, compared to its average volume of 28,310,844. The stock has a market cap of $137.08 billion, a PE ratio of 8.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. Comcast Co. has a fifty-two week low of $32.50 and a fifty-two week high of $45.31. The company's 50 day moving average is $36.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $39.58.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The cable giant reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities research analysts expect that Comcast Co. will post 4.33 EPS for the current year.

Comcast Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 2nd. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.64%. This is an increase from Comcast's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Comcast's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.88%.

Insider Transactions at Comcast

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. TD Cowen reduced their price target on Comcast from $50.00 to $48.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Comcast from $45.00 to $37.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Seaport Res Ptn raised Comcast from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. StockNews.com downgraded Comcast from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, BNP Paribas raised Comcast from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $35.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Comcast presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average 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.