Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Comcast Co. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 57,790,000 shares, an increase of 13.6% from the September 30th total of 50,870,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 17,400,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.3 days. Approximately 1.5% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Comcast Stock Performance

CMCSA stock traded up $1.43 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $43.67. The company had a trading volume of 35,187,038 shares, compared to its average volume of 19,655,486. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $171.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.01. Comcast has a one year low of $36.43 and a one year high of $47.11. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $40.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $39.52.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Comcast

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Comcast by 0.8% during the third quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 30,584 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $1,277,000 after acquiring an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Comcast by 3.1% during the third quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,445 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $353,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Comcast by 4.7% during the third quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,829 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $243,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. Greenwich Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Comcast by 2.7% during the second quarter. Greenwich Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,754 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $382,000 after acquiring an additional 261 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Saxon Interests Inc. raised its stake in Comcast by 2.0% during the third quarter. Saxon Interests Inc. now owns 13,554 shares of the cable giant’s stock worth $566,000 after acquiring an additional 262 shares in the last quarter. 84.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on CMCSA. Macquarie restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $40.00 price target on shares of Comcast in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Rosenblatt Securities restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of Comcast in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Comcast in a research note on Wednesday. KeyCorp dropped their price objective on shares of Comcast from $45.00 to $44.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Comcast from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Comcast presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.58.

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.