Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC Trims Position in Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA)

Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC decreased its position in shares of Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) by 8.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 37,966 shares of the cable giant’s stock after selling 3,302 shares during the quarter. Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC’s holdings in Comcast were worth $1,412,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Comcast in the second quarter worth about $26,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new position in Comcast in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Comcast by 365.4% in 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 period. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Comcast by 220.3% during the 3rd quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 759 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 522 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Comcast by 54.8% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 814 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.32% of the company’s stock.

Comcast Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CMCSA opened at $37.17 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. Comcast Co. has a 12 month low of $36.24 and a 12 month high of $47.11. The company has a market capitalization of $142.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.99, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.01. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $40.83 and its 200 day moving average is $40.25.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The cable giant reported $1.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.06. Comcast had a return on equity of 19.81% and a net margin of 11.92%. The firm had revenue of $32.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.78 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.08 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Comcast Co. will post 4.26 EPS for the current year.

Comcast Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 8th. Comcast’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.33%.

Insider Transactions at Comcast

In related news, CEO Brian L. Roberts sold 234,464 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $284,539,128.48. This represents a 3.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, President Michael J. Cavanagh sold 25,537 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the president now directly owns 534,849 shares in the company, valued at $22,779,218.91. This trade represents a 4.56 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Pivotal Research upped their target price 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. Barclays raised their price objective on Comcast from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Loop Capital decreased their target price on Comcast from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Rosenblatt Securities restated a “neutral” rating and set a $45.00 price target on shares of Comcast in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Comcast from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $47.33.

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.