Grassi Investment Management Increases Stake in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Grassi Investment Management raised its holdings in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 232.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 65,466 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after buying an additional 45,801 shares during the quarter. Grassi Investment Management’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $8,010,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Wedmont Private Capital raised its holdings in Walt Disney by 6.7% in the 1st quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 13,161 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $1,553,000 after acquiring an additional 830 shares during the last quarter. Enterprise Bank & Trust Co grew its position in shares of Walt Disney by 9.6% in the first quarter. Enterprise Bank & Trust Co now owns 10,414 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $1,274,000 after purchasing an additional 916 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Private Trust Co. increased its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 2.1% in the first quarter. Legacy Private Trust Co. now owns 13,063 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $1,598,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. Perennial Advisors LLC lifted its position in Walt Disney by 1.0% during the first quarter. Perennial Advisors LLC now owns 50,117 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $6,132,000 after buying an additional 477 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Abacus Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Walt Disney during the first quarter worth $339,000. 65.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director James P. Gorman purchased 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was bought at an average price of $106.03 per share, for a total transaction of $2,120,600.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 20,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,170,116.01. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Walt Disney news, EVP Sonia L. Coleman sold 4,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.00, for a total transaction of $466,400.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director James P. Gorman bought 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was bought at an average price of $106.03 per share, with a total value of $2,120,600.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 20,467 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,170,116.01. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DIS has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Walt Disney from $128.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 1st. Argus raised their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Walt Disney from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their target price on Walt Disney from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twenty-two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $126.29.

Walt Disney Stock Up 0.3 %

DIS stock traded up $0.34 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $102.18. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 5,466,013 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,412,887. The Walt Disney Company has a 52-week low of $78.73 and a 52-week high of $123.74. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $106.14 and a 200-day simple moving average of $104.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $186.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 111.14, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.40.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The entertainment giant reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $22.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.12 billion. Walt Disney had a return on equity of 8.37% and a net margin of 1.90%. Walt Disney’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.93 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The Walt Disney Company will post 4.75 EPS for the current year.

Walt Disney Company Profile

The Walt Disney Company operates as an entertainment company worldwide. It operates through three segments: Entertainment, Sports, and Experiences. The company produces and distributes film and television video streaming content under the ABC Television Network, Disney, Freeform, FX, Fox, National Geographic, and Star brand television channels, as well as ABC television stations and A+E television networks; and produces original content under the ABC Signature, Disney Branded Television, FX Productions, Lucasfilm, Marvel, National Geographic Studios, Pixar, Searchlight Pictures, Twentieth Century Studios, 20th Television, and Walt Disney Pictures banners.