Stock Traders Purchase Large Volume of Call Options on Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA)

Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA) saw some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock investors purchased 233,377 call options on the company. This is an increase of 466% compared to the typical volume of 41,269 call options.

Comcast Stock Up 5.4%

Shares of NASDAQ CMCSA opened at $29.73 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $108.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.88. Comcast has a 1 year low of $25.75 and a 1 year high of $39.12. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $28.02 and its 200 day moving average price is $31.70.

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 13th. The cable giant reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of $30.34 billion for the quarter. Comcast had a return on equity of 18.06% and a net margin of 18.33%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Comcast will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Comcast Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 4th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 14th will be issued a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 14th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.4%. Comcast’s payout ratio is 21.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on CMCSA. Loop Capital lowered their price target on Comcast from $43.00 to $40.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 31st. Citigroup lowered their target price on Comcast from $39.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 31st. Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Comcast in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Comcast from $32.00 to $31.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Comcast from $38.00 to $30.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 18th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty-one have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Comcast has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $35.78.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of CMCSA. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Comcast during the second quarter worth approximately $3,528,361,000. Dodge & Cox boosted its holdings in Comcast by 18.1% in the second quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 111,272,320 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $3,971,309,000 after acquiring an additional 17,054,579 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in Comcast by 46.1% during the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 33,706,330 shares of the cable giant’s stock valued at $1,059,053,000 after acquiring an additional 10,633,206 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its stake in Comcast by 4.6% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 180,687,135 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $5,677,190,000 after acquiring an additional 7,917,335 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP raised its holdings in shares of Comcast by 1,356.2% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 6,556,098 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $205,993,000 after purchasing an additional 6,105,867 shares during the period. 84.32% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.