Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Buys 23,937 Shares of Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lifted its holdings in shares of Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) by 4.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 609,300 shares of the cable giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 23,937 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Comcast were worth $22,867,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Winch Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Comcast by 269.9% in the 4th 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. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Comcast in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Comcast in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Comcast in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its position in Comcast by 54.8% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 814 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 288 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.32% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Comcast from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Loop Capital lowered their price target 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. Barclays lowered 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, February 3rd. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Comcast from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $38.00 price objective on shares of Comcast in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Comcast presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $43.83.

Comcast Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CMCSA opened at $36.30 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.68. Comcast Co. has a 1-year low of $32.50 and a 1-year high of $45.31. The company has a market capitalization of $137.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.00. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $36.52 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $39.57.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The cable giant reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.08. Comcast had a net margin of 13.09% and a return on equity of 19.98%. Research analysts expect 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 given a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.64%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 2nd. This is a boost from Comcast’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Comcast’s payout ratio is currently 31.81%.

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.