Comcast Stock (NASDAQ:CMCSA) Slips Despite New Advertising Shift
Communications giant Comcast (CMCSA) is not the kind of operation to leave money on the table. So when it heard that a fairly large bloc of advertisers would be willing to spend more money if there were a way to better connect ad exposure to certain conditions, Comcast got right after it. Oddly enough, this was not good enough for some shareholders, who sent Comcast shares down fractionally in Wednesday afternoon's trading.
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A new project, in conjunction with Marpipe and Mastercard (MA), is going to bring a set of new tools to advertisers' hands. With 63% of advertisers in a Comcast Advertising study noting that they would spend more if there was '…more attribution connecting TV ad exposure to specific consumer actions or purchases.' Comcast needed to hear no more, and got to work.
Now, Comcast advertisers will have access to new tools, including the Comcast Media Solution feature, which now has support from Mastercard to allow access to 'beta testing sales lift' using a range of categories from automotive to home services. It is, essentially, a change in the way we look at advertising performance on television. Plus, many of these features—which were formerly only available to large-scale national advertisers —will now make their way into the local market. 'Personalized, shoppable ads' also become more available, which should produce better outcomes for advertisers. Given the fragile state of linear television viewership these days, Comcast needs to get more out of the bit of viewership it has left.
Pushing Digital With Kids
Meanwhile, Comcast is also eager to help the next generation of digital pioneers get started, and is putting money behind that notion. It gave a $20,000 grant to the Boys and Girls Clubs of Delaware, which will be put to the 'My Future' education program to enhance digital skills in the youth served therein.
Given that there are over 40 such clubs in Delaware, the grant might not exactly reach very far. But the Boys and Girls Clubs were glad to get it all the same, with executive director of the Western Sussex Branch Jermane Duncan noting, 'Comcast understands the critically important role that digital skills play in accelerating career opportunities. This grant helps set our youth up for success both in and out of the classroom, and will strengthen our ability to support the next generation of leaders.'
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus rating on CMCSA stock based on nine Buys, 10 Holds and two Sells assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 8.77% loss in its share price over the past year, the average CMCSA price target of $41.44 per share implies 20.52% upside potential.
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