Comcast Corporation $CMCSA Shares Purchased by Canada Pension Plan Investment Board

Key Points

• The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board has increased its stake in Comcast Corporation by 37.3%, holding approximately $144.58 million worth of shares after purchasing over 1 million additional shares.
• Analysts have varying outlooks on Comcast, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and diverse price targets ranging from $36.00 to $58.00 set by different firms.
• Comcast recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.33, representing a 3.9% dividend yield, with a payout ratio of 21.82%.

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its stake in shares of Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA - Free Report) by 37.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,918,217 shares of the cable giant's stock after purchasing an additional 1,064,614 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board owned 0.10% of Comcast worth $144,582,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. WPG Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Comcast during the 1st quarter worth approximately $47,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in shares of Comcast during the 1st quarter worth approximately $538,000. Trexquant Investment LP raised its position in shares of Comcast by 66.5% during the 1st quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 412,091 shares of the cable giant's stock worth $15,206,000 after purchasing an additional 164,560 shares during the last quarter. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. raised its holdings in Comcast by 165.3% in the 1st quarter. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 149,048 shares of the cable giant's stock valued at $5,500,000 after acquiring an additional 92,867 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oarsman Capital Inc. raised its holdings in Comcast by 8.9% in the 1st quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc. now owns 26,939 shares of the cable giant's stock valued at $994,000 after acquiring an additional 2,193 shares during the last quarter. 84.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Comcast Stock Up 0.5%

Comcast stock traded up $0.16 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $34.13. 20,294,509 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 24,099,027. The company's 50-day moving average is $34.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $34.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. Comcast Corporation has a 52-week low of $31.03 and a 52-week high of $45.31. The firm has a market cap of $126.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.64, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.93.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The cable giant reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.07. Comcast had a net margin of 18.44% and a return on equity of 18.86%. The firm had revenue of $30.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $29.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.21 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Comcast Corporation will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Comcast Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 1st will be given 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 is 21.82%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on CMCSA. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Comcast from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 4th. Moffett Nathanson boosted their price target on Comcast from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, June 12th. Rothschild & Co Redburn cut their price target on Comcast from $44.00 to $35.00 in a report on Friday, June 20th. Argus downgraded Comcast from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Comcast in a report on Friday, July 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Comcast currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price 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.