Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Acquires 1,606,593 Shares of Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) by 34.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,319,973 shares of the cable giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,606,593 shares during the quarter. Comcast comprises approximately 1.7% of Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest position. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Comcast were worth $237,189,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CMCSA. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Comcast in the fourth quarter valued at $93,000. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Comcast by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 17,937,001 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $673,176,000 after purchasing an additional 472,659 shares during the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its position in shares of Comcast by 29.4% in the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,409,429 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $90,426,000 after purchasing an additional 547,280 shares during the period. Strategy Asset Managers LLC increased its position in Comcast by 7.4% during the fourth quarter. Strategy Asset Managers LLC now owns 9,798 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $368,000 after buying an additional 676 shares during the period. Finally, Allianz SE acquired a new position in Comcast during the fourth quarter worth approximately $6,709,000. 84.32% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Comcast Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of CMCSA opened at $36.62 on Friday. Comcast Co. has a twelve month low of $32.50 and a twelve 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. The firm has a market capitalization of $138.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.82, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.00. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $35.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.99.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The cable giant reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.08. Comcast had a return on equity of 19.98% and a net margin of 13.09%. On average, research analysts predict 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. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be given a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 2nd. This is a positive change from Comcast’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.60%. Comcast’s payout ratio is currently 31.81%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on CMCSA shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Comcast from $45.00 to $39.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Benchmark lowered their price objective on shares of Comcast from $57.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Comcast from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $35.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Comcast from $45.00 to $37.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Scotiabank lowered Comcast from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $48.00 to $44.50 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Comcast presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.64.

Comcast 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.