The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) Shares Sold by Hall Laurie J Trustee

Hall Laurie J Trustee lessened its position in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 47.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 2,211 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after selling 2,000 shares during the period. Hall Laurie J Trustee’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $246,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Walt Disney in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Friedenthal Financial acquired a new stake in shares of Walt Disney in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $49,000. First PREMIER Bank boosted its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 98.1% in the third quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 517 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Walt Disney during the fourth quarter worth $50,000. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Walt Disney in the third quarter worth $51,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Walt Disney Stock Up 0.6 %

DIS opened at $107.07 on Monday. The Walt Disney Company has a 12 month low of $83.91 and a 12 month high of $123.74. The business has a 50-day moving average of $112.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $99.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $193.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.43.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The entertainment giant reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $22.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.49 billion. Walt Disney had a net margin of 5.44% and a return on equity of 9.21%. Walt Disney’s revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.82 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were given a $0.50 dividend. This is a positive change from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. This represents a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walt Disney

In other news, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of Walt Disney stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.57, for a total value of $42,667,242.84. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 226,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,980,695.19. The trade was a 62.15 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Brent Woodford sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.74, for a total transaction of $917,920.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,054,870.70. This trade represents a 15.37 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 385,412 shares of company stock valued at $44,153,263. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on DIS. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Walt Disney from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $100.00 to $147.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Raymond James reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Walt Disney from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $125.54.

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.