Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS Cuts Stock Position in Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA)

Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS reduced its position in Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA - Free Report) by 3.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 428,546 shares of the cable giant's stock after selling 15,241 shares during the period. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS's holdings in Comcast were worth $16,083,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Taurus Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Comcast by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Taurus Asset Management LLC now owns 9,125 shares of the cable giant's stock worth $381,000 after buying an additional 253 shares during the period. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Comcast by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,829 shares of the cable giant's stock worth $243,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. Arvest Investments Inc. increased its position in shares of Comcast by 1.0% during the third quarter. Arvest Investments Inc. now owns 27,211 shares of the cable giant's stock worth $1,137,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares during the period. McIlrath & Eck LLC raised its stake in shares of Comcast by 14.8% during the third quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 2,183 shares of the cable giant's stock valued at $91,000 after acquiring an additional 282 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mengis Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Comcast by 1.5% in the third quarter. Mengis Capital Management Inc. now owns 19,060 shares of the cable giant's stock valued at $796,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares during the period. 84.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, President Michael J. Cavanagh sold 25,537 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the president now directly owns 534,849 shares in the company, valued at $22,779,218.91. The trade was a 4.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Brian L. Roberts sold 234,464 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at $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 corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CMCSA has been the topic of several research reports. Evercore ISI upgraded Comcast to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Comcast from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Macquarie dropped their target price on shares of Comcast from $42.00 to $36.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Pivotal Research boosted their price target on shares of Comcast from $47.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Comcast from $45.00 to $39.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Nine 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.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $44.13.

Comcast Stock Performance

NASDAQ:CMCSA traded down $0.16 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $36.26. 21,402,835 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 26,761,117. Comcast Co. has a 52-week low of $32.50 and a 52-week high of $45.31. The company's 50 day moving average price is $36.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $39.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $137.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.74, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.00.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The cable giant reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Comcast Co. will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Comcast Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be given a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 2nd. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.64%. This is a positive change from Comcast's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Comcast's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.88%.

Comcast Company 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.