Value Partners Investments Inc. Purchases 62,984 Shares of Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA)

Value Partners Investments Inc. raised its stake in Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA - Free Report) by 59.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 169,633 shares of the cable giant's stock after purchasing an additional 62,984 shares during the period. Comcast accounts for approximately 0.6% of Value Partners Investments Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Value Partners Investments Inc.'s holdings in Comcast were worth $7,438,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of CMCSA. Jmac Enterprises LLC raised its position in shares of Comcast by 8.9% in the 4th quarter. Jmac Enterprises LLC now owns 24,459 shares of the cable giant's stock valued at $1,073,000 after purchasing an additional 2,005 shares during the last quarter. Executive Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Comcast during the fourth quarter valued at $353,000. Stiles Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in Comcast during the 4th quarter worth about $239,000. Harbour Trust & Investment Management Co acquired a new position in shares of Comcast in the fourth quarter valued at about $866,000. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Comcast by 15.4% during the fourth quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 291,303 shares of the cable giant's stock worth $12,774,000 after purchasing an additional 38,888 shares during the period. 84.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $50.00 price target on shares of Comcast in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Comcast in a report on Wednesday. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price target on Comcast from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, December 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of Comcast from $55.00 to $53.00 in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Finally, BNP Paribas reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of Comcast in a report on Tuesday. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $49.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, President Michael J. Cavanagh sold 114,749 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.10, for a total transaction of $5,289,928.90. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.18% of the company's stock.

Comcast Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:CMCSA traded down $0.43 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $39.72. 22,366,728 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 20,579,785. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $42.43 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.94. Comcast Co. has a fifty-two week low of $36.38 and a fifty-two week high of $47.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The stock has a market cap of $157.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.68, a P/E/G ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.98.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The cable giant reported $0.84 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $31.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.41 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Comcast Co. will post 4.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Comcast Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 3rd will be paid a $0.31 dividend. This is an increase from Comcast's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 2nd. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.12%. Comcast's payout ratio is 33.33%.

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.