Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA) Shareholders Set to Receive $0.33 Quarterly Dividend

Key Points

• Comcast declared a quarterly dividend of $0.33 per share, payable January 27 to shareholders of record as of January 6. The annualized dividend is $1.32 per share, representing a 5.8% yield.
• Comcast has raised its dividend for 18 consecutive years, with a current payout ratio of 28.4%, indicating that earnings comfortably cover the dividend.
• The company recently exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $1.07 in EPS versus the $0.99 consensus estimate, although revenue fell 6.1% year over year. Analysts maintain an overall “Hold” rating with an average price target of $30.81.

Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA - Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, October 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.33 per share by the cable giant on Wednesday, January 27th. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.8%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 6th.

Comcast has increased its dividend payment by an average of 0.1% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 18 years. Comcast has a dividend payout ratio of 28.4% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Comcast to earn $3.61 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.32 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 36.6%.

Comcast Stock Performance

NASDAQ:CMCSA traded up $0.76 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $22.84. 54,373,414 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 32,833,027. Comcast has a one year low of $20.48 and a one year high of $32.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $81.05 billion, a PE ratio of 7.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.68. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $23.87 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $24.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 22nd. The cable giant reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $29.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $29.22 billion. Comcast had a net margin of 8.97% and a return on equity of 14.77%. The business's revenue was down 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.12 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Comcast will post 3.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on CMCSA shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Comcast from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and cut their price target for the company from $34.00 to $32.00 in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $26.00 price objective on Comcast and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. BNP Paribas Exane dropped their price objective on Comcast from $25.00 to $22.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $27.00 target price (down from $32.00) on shares of Comcast in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. Finally, Barclays set a $24.00 price objective on shares of Comcast and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 29th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $30.81.

About Comcast

Comcast Corporation is a global media and communications company headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1963 as American Cable Systems, the company grew through the expansion of cable television and broadband services and adopted the Comcast name in 1969.

Through its Connectivity & Platforms businesses, Comcast provides residential and business customers with broadband internet, video, voice, mobile and related services. Its Xfinity brand offers internet, television, streaming and wireless products in the United States, while Comcast Business serves commercial and enterprise customers with connectivity, communications and technology solutions.

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