Wintrust Investments LLC Sells 343 Shares of Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA)

Wintrust Investments LLC cut its stake in shares of Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) by 14.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,064 shares of the cable giant’s stock after selling 343 shares during the period. Wintrust Investments LLC’s holdings in Comcast were worth $77,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Comcast Stock Performance

CMCSA opened at $34.70 on Friday. Comcast Co. has a 52-week low of $32.50 and a 52-week high of $45.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $131.20 billion, a PE ratio of 8.36, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.00. 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 business’s 50-day simple moving average is $35.96 and its 200 day simple moving average is $39.23.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The cable giant reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Comcast Co. will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Comcast Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be paid a $0.33 dividend. This is a positive change from Comcast’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 2nd. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.80%. Comcast’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.81%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CMCSA has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America cut Comcast from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $50.00 to $38.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. BNP Paribas raised Comcast from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $35.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Comcast from $45.00 to $38.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays decreased their target price on Comcast from $42.00 to $37.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on Comcast from $47.00 to $44.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Nine investment 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 company. According to MarketBeat, Comcast presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.