The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) Announces Semi-annual Dividend of $0.50

The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) declared a semi-annual dividend on Thursday, December 5th,Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 24th will be paid a dividend of 0.50 per share by the entertainment giant on Wednesday, July 23rd. This represents a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 24th. This is a boost from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45.

Walt Disney Price Performance

Shares of DIS stock traded down $0.49 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $116.50. The stock had a trading volume of 8,966,127 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,896,219. The firm has a market capitalization of $210.97 billion, a PE ratio of 43.17, a PEG ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. Walt Disney has a 12 month low of $83.91 and a 12 month high of $123.74. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $101.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $97.46.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The entertainment giant reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.05. Walt Disney had a net margin of 5.44% and a return on equity of 9.21%. The company had revenue of $22.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.49 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.82 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Walt Disney will post 5.38 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Macquarie raised their price target on Walt Disney from $91.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Walt Disney from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Guggenheim raised their price target on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Raymond James restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $123.67.

Insider Transactions at Walt Disney

In related news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.62, for a total value of $568,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,005,529.10. This trade represents a 10.19 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.57, for a total transaction of $42,667,242.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 226,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,980,695.19. This trade represents a 62.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.