Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Trims Stock Holdings in Comcast Corporation $CMCSA

Key Points

• Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. has decreased its stake in Comcast Corporation by 6.6%, selling 229,400 shares during the first quarter, now holding approximately 3.2 million shares valued at $119.5 million.
• Amid these changes, 84.32% of Comcast's stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds, indicating strong institutional interest in the company.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.33 per share, with an annualized yield of 3.9% and a payout ratio of 21.82%.

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lowered its position in shares of Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA - Free Report) by 6.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,239,459 shares of the cable giant's stock after selling 229,400 shares during the quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned about 0.09% of Comcast worth $119,536,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec lifted its position in Comcast by 56.1% during the first quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec now owns 428,918 shares of the cable giant's stock valued at $15,831,000 after buying an additional 154,199 shares during the period. Perbak Capital Partners LLP purchased a new position in shares of Comcast in the 1st quarter worth about $280,000. Chiron Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Comcast by 231.2% in the 1st quarter. Chiron Capital Management LLC now owns 44,138 shares of the cable giant's stock worth $1,629,000 after purchasing an additional 30,811 shares during the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Comcast by 11.7% in the 1st quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,095,934 shares of the cable giant's stock worth $40,440,000 after purchasing an additional 114,678 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Comcast by 72.5% in the 1st quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC now owns 68,570 shares of the cable giant's stock worth $2,530,000 after purchasing an additional 28,813 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.32% of the company's stock.

Comcast Stock Performance

NASDAQ CMCSA traded down $0.04 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $33.91. The company's stock had a trading volume of 21,111,306 shares, compared to its average volume of 19,302,668. Comcast Corporation has a 12 month low of $31.03 and a 12 month high of $45.31. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $34.03 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $34.69. The company has a market cap of $125.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.91.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The cable giant reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $30.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $29.81 billion. Comcast had a return on equity of 18.86% and a net margin of 18.44%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.21 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Comcast Corporation will post 4.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Comcast Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 1st. Comcast's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.82%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CMCSA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Comcast from $44.50 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Comcast in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Comcast in a research report on Tuesday, August 26th. Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price target on Comcast from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn lowered their price target on Comcast from $44.00 to $35.00 in a research report on Friday, June 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $40.73.

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.