Mather Group LLC. Acquires 3,060 Shares of Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA)

Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) by 5.2% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 62,055 shares of the cable giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,060 shares during the quarter. Mather Group LLC.’s holdings in Comcast were worth $2,329,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Commonwealth Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Comcast during the 4th quarter worth approximately $245,000. Flavin Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Comcast during the fourth quarter worth $287,000. Patron Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Comcast by 14.7% in the 4th quarter. Patron Partners LLC now owns 10,857 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $407,000 after acquiring an additional 1,393 shares during the last quarter. Trust Point Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Comcast by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 24,479 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $919,000 after acquiring an additional 1,203 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT grew its position in Comcast by 11.4% during the 4th quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT now owns 9,442 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $354,000 after acquiring an additional 969 shares during the last quarter. 84.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Comcast Stock Up 1.1 %

Comcast stock opened at $33.55 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company has a market capitalization of $128.38 billion, a PE ratio of 8.08, a PEG ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.00. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $38.41 and its 200 day moving average is $40.02. Comcast Co. has a 12-month low of $32.50 and a 12-month high of $45.38.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 13.09% and a return on equity of 19.98%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Comcast Co. will post 4.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Comcast Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.33 per share. This is an increase from Comcast’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 2nd. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.93%. Comcast’s payout ratio is currently 29.88%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CMCSA has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. BNP Paribas raised Comcast from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $35.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Pivotal Research lifted their target price on shares of Comcast from $47.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Comcast from $42.00 to $37.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Comcast from $45.00 to $37.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Bank of America lowered Comcast from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $50.00 to $38.00 in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Comcast currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $44.13.

Insider Transactions at Comcast

In other news, CEO Brian L. Roberts sold 234,464 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.66, for a total value of $10,002,234.24. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 6,669,928 shares in the company, valued at $284,539,128.48. This trade represents a 3.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, President Michael J. Cavanagh sold 25,537 shares of Comcast stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.59, for a total value of $1,087,620.83. Following the transaction, the president now directly owns 534,849 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,779,218.91. The trade was a 4.56 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Comcast Company 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.