Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) Rating Increased to Sector Outperform at Scotiabank

Scotiabank upgraded shares of Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSAFree Report) from a sector perform rating to a sector outperform rating in a research note published on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has $48.00 price objective on the cable giant’s stock, up from their prior price objective of $47.75.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of Comcast from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. KeyCorp cut their price target on Comcast from $45.00 to $44.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Barclays cut their target price on Comcast from $41.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. StockNews.com cut shares of Comcast from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Macquarie restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $40.00 target price on shares of Comcast in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Comcast currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.63.

Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on CMCSA

Comcast Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of CMCSA traded down $0.11 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $43.56. The stock had a trading volume of 25,078,455 shares, compared to its average volume of 19,681,141. Comcast has a 1 year low of $36.43 and a 1 year high of $47.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.66. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $40.80 and its 200 day moving average is $39.58. The firm has a market cap of $168.69 billion, a PE ratio of 11.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.01.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSAGet Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The cable giant reported $1.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $32.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.78 billion. Comcast had a return on equity of 20.17% and a net margin of 12.46%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Comcast will post 4.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Comcast Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 8th. Comcast’s payout ratio is currently 32.98%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Comcast in the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in Comcast during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Comcast by 204.7% in the 2nd quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 777 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 522 shares during the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Comcast by 365.4% during the 3rd quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 726 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 570 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Archer Investment Corp lifted its stake in Comcast by 177.1% during the second quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 812 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 519 shares during the last quarter. 84.32% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Comcast

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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.

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Analyst Recommendations for Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA)

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