Howard Capital Management Inc. Purchases 3,910 Shares of Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA)

Howard Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) by 3.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 126,353 shares of the cable giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,910 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Comcast were worth $4,742,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its position in shares of Comcast by 55,334.5% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 8,273,052 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $345,565,000 after purchasing an additional 8,258,128 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its position in Comcast by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 117,420,328 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $4,904,647,000 after acquiring an additional 6,062,658 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its position in Comcast by 530.5% during the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 3,429,298 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $143,242,000 after acquiring an additional 2,885,370 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in Comcast by 31.7% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 7,613,977 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $318,036,000 after acquiring an additional 1,833,453 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in 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 valued at $1,268,310,000 after acquiring an additional 1,717,762 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.32% of the company’s stock.

Comcast Price Performance

CMCSA stock opened at $36.26 on Friday. Comcast Co. has a one year low of $32.50 and a one year high of $45.31. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $36.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $39.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.68. The company has a market capitalization of $137.08 billion, a PE ratio of 8.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.00.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The cable giant reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Comcast Co. will post 4.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Comcast Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be paid 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.64%. Comcast’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.88%.

Insider Activity at Comcast

In other Comcast news, CEO Brian L. Roberts sold 234,464 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.66, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 3.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, President Michael J. Cavanagh sold 25,537 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.59, for a total transaction of $1,087,620.83. Following the transaction, the president now owns 534,849 shares in the company, valued at $22,779,218.91. This trade represents 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.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on CMCSA shares. Rosenblatt Securities reduced 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. KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of Comcast from $44.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Comcast from $50.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Comcast from $47.00 to $44.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Loop Capital cut their target price on shares of Comcast from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.83.

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.