Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) Stock Holdings Increased by Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) by 34.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,319,973 shares of the cable giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,606,593 shares during the period. Comcast makes up 1.7% of Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 5th biggest position. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.17% of Comcast worth $237,189,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CMCSA. Financial Counselors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Comcast by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 45,328 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $1,893,000 after purchasing an additional 1,354 shares during the period. Fred Alger Management LLC increased its holdings in Comcast by 3.5% in the third quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 134,166 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $5,604,000 after buying an additional 4,586 shares in the last quarter. Encompass More Asset Management boosted its stake in shares of Comcast by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Encompass More Asset Management now owns 8,748 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $365,000 after acquiring an additional 414 shares in the last quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP increased its stake in shares of Comcast by 45.7% in the 3rd quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 260,458 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $10,879,000 after purchasing an additional 81,636 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Comcast by 1.1% during the third quarter. Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 140,357 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $6,181,000 after purchasing an additional 1,545 shares in the last quarter. 84.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Comcast Stock Performance

NASDAQ CMCSA opened at $36.62 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.68. The company has a market cap of $138.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.00. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $35.89 and a two-hundred day moving average of $38.99. Comcast Co. has a 1-year low of $32.50 and a 1-year high of $45.31.

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

Comcast Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be issued a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 2nd. This is a positive change from Comcast’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.60%. Comcast’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.81%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on CMCSA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Comcast from $45.00 to $39.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Comcast from $50.00 to $44.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com raised shares of Comcast from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Comcast from $42.00 to $37.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on Comcast from $47.00 to $44.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.64.

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.