Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) Stock Rating Reaffirmed by Needham & Company LLC

Needham & Company LLC reissued their buy rating on shares of Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) in a research note published on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $110.00 price objective on the entertainment giant’s stock.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the company. Bank of America cut their price target on Walt Disney from $145.00 to $120.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Barclays cut their price target on Walt Disney from $130.00 to $105.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Moffett Nathanson lowered their price objective on Walt Disney from $130.00 to $125.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Raymond James lowered their price objective on Walt Disney from $123.00 to $101.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on Walt Disney from $130.00 to $115.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $118.43.

Walt Disney Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DIS opened at $96.01 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $90.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $101.30. Walt Disney has a 1-year low of $78.73 and a 1-year high of $123.74. The firm has a market cap of $175.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 104.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The entertainment giant reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.19. Walt Disney had a return on equity of 8.64% and a net margin of 5.30%. The firm had revenue of $23.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.08 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.03 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Walt Disney will post 4.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Calvin Mcdonald acquired 11,756 shares of Walt Disney stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $85.06 per share, with a total value of $999,965.36. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 22,313 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,897,943.78. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of DIS. Jennison Associates LLC bought a new position in shares of Walt Disney during the first quarter valued at about $1,490,492,000. Capital World Investors grew its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 3,332.4% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 6,267,593 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $766,903,000 after purchasing an additional 6,084,993 shares during the last quarter. ValueAct Holdings L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Walt Disney in the fourth quarter worth about $459,245,000. Swedbank AB bought a new stake in shares of Walt Disney in the first quarter worth about $493,715,000. Finally, Farallon Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walt Disney in the second quarter worth about $355,673,000. 65.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Walt Disney

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.