Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) Shares Sold by New York State Common Retirement Fund

New York State Common Retirement Fund decreased its holdings in Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA - Free Report) by 4.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,905,021 shares of the cable giant's stock after selling 299,721 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned about 0.15% of Comcast worth $221,615,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CMCSA. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its position in Comcast by 55,334.5% during the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 8,273,052 shares of the cable giant's stock worth $345,565,000 after acquiring an additional 8,258,128 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Comcast by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 117,420,328 shares of the cable giant's stock valued at $4,904,647,000 after buying an additional 6,062,658 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its stake in shares of Comcast by 530.5% during the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 3,429,298 shares of the cable giant's stock valued at $143,242,000 after buying an additional 2,885,370 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI raised its stake in shares of Comcast by 31.7% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 7,613,977 shares of the cable giant's stock valued at $318,036,000 after buying an additional 1,833,453 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of Comcast by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 30,364,136 shares of the cable giant's stock valued at $1,268,310,000 after buying an additional 1,717,762 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.32% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on CMCSA shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Comcast from $50.00 to $44.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on Comcast from $44.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. TD Cowen cut their price target on Comcast from $50.00 to $48.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. BNP Paribas upgraded Comcast from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $35.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Benchmark cut their price target on Comcast from $57.00 to $55.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $44.13.

Comcast Price Performance

Shares of Comcast stock traded down $0.16 on Friday, hitting $36.26. 21,402,835 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 26,761,117. The stock has a market capitalization of $137.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $36.65 and a 200 day moving average price of $39.60. Comcast Co. has a 1-year low of $32.50 and a 1-year high of $45.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09.

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

Comcast Increases Dividend

The firm 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 is Wednesday, April 2nd. This is a boost from Comcast's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.64%. Comcast's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.88%.

Insider Activity at Comcast

In related news, President Michael J. Cavanagh sold 25,537 shares of the company's 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 transaction, the president now directly owns 534,849 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,779,218.91. This represents a 4.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal 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 shares were sold at an average price of $42.66, for a total value of $10,002,234.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 6,669,928 shares in the company, valued at approximately $284,539,128.48. The trade was a 3.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.26% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.