Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) Stake Cut by Freestone Capital Holdings LLC

Freestone Capital Holdings LLC reduced its holdings in Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 316,977 shares of the cable giant’s stock after selling 5,860 shares during the period. Freestone Capital Holdings LLC’s holdings in Comcast were worth $11,896,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CMCSA. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Comcast by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 117,420,328 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $4,904,647,000 after purchasing an additional 6,062,658 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Comcast by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 32,709,601 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $1,227,591,000 after buying an additional 838,366 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in shares of Comcast by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 30,364,136 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $1,268,310,000 after purchasing an additional 1,717,762 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Comcast during the 4th quarter worth approximately $743,681,000. Finally, Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board grew its holdings in shares of Comcast by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 15,983,230 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $667,620,000 after purchasing an additional 822,936 shares in the last quarter. 84.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Comcast Price Performance

Comcast stock opened at $35.56 on Thursday. Comcast Co. has a 12 month low of $32.50 and a 12 month high of $45.31. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $36.17 and its 200-day moving average is $39.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company has a market capitalization of $134.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.57, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.00.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The cable giant reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.08. Comcast had a return on equity of 19.98% and a net margin of 13.09%. Equities research analysts expect that Comcast Co. will post 4.33 EPS for the current year.

Comcast Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be paid a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.71%. This is a boost from Comcast’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 2nd. Comcast’s dividend payout ratio is presently 31.81%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on CMCSA. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $38.00 target price on Comcast in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup cut their price objective on Comcast from $47.00 to $44.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Rosenblatt Securities cut their price objective on Comcast from $45.00 to $36.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded Comcast from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on Comcast from $50.00 to $44.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $43.83.

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.