Comcast Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:CMCSA)

Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA - Get Free Report) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Stock traders purchased 49,045 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 120% compared to the typical daily volume of 22,263 put options.

Comcast Price Performance

CMCSA traded down $0.43 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $39.72. The stock had a trading volume of 22,366,728 shares, compared to its average volume of 20,579,785. The stock has a market cap of $157.76 billion, a PE ratio of 10.68, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.60. Comcast has a one year low of $36.38 and a one year high of $47.46. The business has a 50-day moving average of $42.43 and a 200-day moving average of $42.94.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The cable giant reported $0.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.04. Comcast had a return on equity of 19.75% and a net margin of 12.66%. The business had revenue of $31.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $30.41 billion. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Comcast will post 4.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Comcast Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 24th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This is a boost from Comcast's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 2nd. Comcast's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.33%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on CMCSA. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Comcast from $50.00 to $47.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 5th. Pivotal Research lifted their price objective on Comcast from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on Comcast from $55.00 to $53.00 in a research report on Friday, April 5th. BNP Paribas restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of Comcast in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price target on Comcast from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, December 22nd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $49.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Comcast

In other Comcast news, President Michael J. Cavanagh sold 114,749 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.10, for a total value of $5,289,928.90. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.18% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Comcast in the fourth quarter worth about $2,542,988,000. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Comcast by 121,265.4% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 25,530,426 shares of the cable giant's stock worth $892,799,000 after buying an additional 25,509,390 shares during the period. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in Comcast by 17.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 107,773,317 shares of the cable giant's stock worth $4,725,926,000 after buying an additional 15,625,543 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley lifted its holdings in Comcast by 15.2% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 53,653,778 shares of the cable giant's stock worth $1,876,273,000 after buying an additional 7,084,451 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in Comcast by 23.2% in the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 32,433,598 shares of the cable giant's stock worth $1,422,218,000 after buying an additional 6,098,115 shares during the period. 84.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Comcast

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.