Wendell David Associates Inc. Trims Stake in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Wendell David Associates Inc. cut its stake in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 1.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 7,880 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after selling 100 shares during the quarter. Wendell David Associates Inc.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $877,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of DIS. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 12,574.4% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,426,393 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $329,585,000 after purchasing an additional 3,399,359 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Walt Disney by 8.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 34,416,668 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $3,310,539,000 after buying an additional 2,765,389 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in Walt Disney by 114.4% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,307,794 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $414,582,000 after buying an additional 2,298,921 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in Walt Disney by 112.0% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,142,991 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $398,508,000 after acquiring an additional 2,188,610 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Walt Disney by 3.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 37,672,320 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $3,609,833,000 after purchasing an additional 1,393,082 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.57, for a total value of $42,667,242.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Brent Woodford sold 5,000 shares of Walt Disney stock in a transaction 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 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 385,412 shares of company stock valued at $44,153,263. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Walt Disney Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DIS opened at $108.86 on Thursday. The Walt Disney Company has a 52 week low of $83.91 and a 52 week high of $123.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $197.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $112.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $99.83.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last posted its quarterly 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. Walt Disney had a return on equity of 9.21% and a net margin of 5.44%. The business had revenue of $22.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.49 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.82 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This is a positive change from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. Walt Disney’s payout ratio is currently 36.90%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on DIS. Bank of America boosted their target price on Walt Disney from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating and set a $125.00 price objective on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Wednesday. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $108.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Walt Disney has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.52.

Walt Disney 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.