I remain a fan of media plays, and Comcast (CMCSA) should be among the group’s leaders in 2019, suggests Chuck Carlson, a specialist on dividend investment plans and editor of DRIP Investor.
Comcast has two primary businesses, Comcast Cable and NBCUniversal. Comcast Cable is one of the nation’s largest video, high-speed internet, and phone providers to residential and business customers under the XFINITY brand.
NBCUniversal operates news, entertainment and sports cable networks, the NBC and Telemundo broadcast networks, television production operations, television station groups, Universal Pictures, and Universal Parks and Resorts.
One of Wall Street’s concerns with Comcast has been the cord-cutting by people who are leaving cable and moving to over-the-top online streaming services to receive their media.
The firm’s various operations — cable, Internet services, theme parks, and broadcasting and film entertainment — continue to generate lots of cash flow.
The firm has been putting that cash flow to work in terms of boosting its dividend and making acquisitions, the most recent being U.K. broadcaster Sky. The addition of Sky gives Comcast a huge overseas footprint and ample opportunities to monetize its assets.
Trading at less than 12 times 2019 earnings estimates and yielding over 2%, the stock represents an attractive play in the market. I own these shares and expect them to be a solid performer in 2019.
