MSA Advisors LLC Takes $863,000 Position in Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA)

MSA Advisors LLC bought a new position in Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 22,988 shares of the cable giant’s stock, valued at approximately $863,000. Comcast makes up 0.2% of MSA Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P grew its holdings in shares of Comcast by 30.0% during the third quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 427,120 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $17,841,000 after buying an additional 98,605 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in Comcast by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 4,558,230 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $190,397,000 after purchasing an additional 219,976 shares during the last quarter. Cadence Bank increased its holdings in Comcast by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Cadence Bank now owns 162,607 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $6,792,000 after purchasing an additional 2,335 shares in the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Comcast by 4.0% in the third quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 400,315 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $16,721,000 after purchasing an additional 15,532 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hardy Reed LLC boosted its position in shares of Comcast by 5.8% during the third quarter. Hardy Reed LLC now owns 7,903 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $330,000 after buying an additional 430 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.32% of the company’s stock.

Comcast Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ CMCSA opened at $37.37 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company has a market cap of $141.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.00. Comcast Co. has a 52 week low of $32.50 and a 52 week high of $45.31. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $35.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $39.02.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The cable giant reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.08. Comcast had a net margin of 13.09% and a return on equity of 19.98%. Research analysts anticipate 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 given a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.53%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 2nd. This is an increase from Comcast’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Comcast’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.81%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. BNP Paribas raised Comcast from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $35.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Rosenblatt Securities lowered their target price on shares of Comcast from $45.00 to $36.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Comcast from $42.00 to $37.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Comcast from $47.00 to $40.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Comcast from $45.00 to $39.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.64.

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.