Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) Shares Sold by Prudential Financial Inc.

Prudential Financial Inc. cut its stake in shares of Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) by 5.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,780,550 shares of the cable giant’s stock after selling 206,952 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. owned 0.10% of Comcast worth $141,884,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Promus Capital LLC bought a new position in Comcast in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Comcast by 269.9% during the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 688 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 502 shares during the last quarter. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Comcast during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Comcast in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new position in shares of Comcast during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. 84.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Comcast Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CMCSA opened at $36.75 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $138.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.86, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.00. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $35.83 and its 200 day moving average is $39.08. Comcast Co. has a 12 month low of $32.50 and a 12 month high of $45.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The cable giant reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.08. Comcast had a return on equity of 19.98% and a net margin of 13.09%. Research analysts predict 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. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 2nd. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.59%. This is a boost from Comcast’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Comcast’s payout ratio is currently 31.81%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on CMCSA. Barclays dropped their price target on Comcast from $42.00 to $37.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock 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. Citigroup dropped their price target on Comcast from $47.00 to $44.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Rosenblatt Securities decreased their price target on shares of Comcast from $45.00 to $36.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Bank of America lowered shares of Comcast from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $50.00 to $38.00 in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $43.83.

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.