The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) Shares Sold by Ameritas Advisory Services LLC

Ameritas Advisory Services LLC reduced its position in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS - Free Report) by 35.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 16,203 shares of the entertainment giant's stock after selling 8,787 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Walt Disney were worth $1,804,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp lifted its position in Walt Disney by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 77,596,191 shares of the entertainment giant's stock worth $7,463,978,000 after acquiring an additional 490,681 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 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 worth $3,609,833,000 after purchasing an additional 1,393,082 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its position in Walt Disney by 8.7% in the 3rd 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. Legal & General Group Plc increased its stake in Walt Disney by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 14,281,047 shares of the entertainment giant's stock valued at $1,417,958,000 after buying an additional 425,438 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in Walt Disney by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 13,850,678 shares of the entertainment giant's stock worth $1,332,297,000 after buying an additional 454,678 shares during the last quarter. 65.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Walt Disney news, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at approximately $25,980,695.19. This represents a 62.15 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Brent Woodford sold 5,000 shares of Walt Disney 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,055 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,005,529.10. This trade represents a 10.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 385,412 shares of company stock valued at $44,153,263 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Walt Disney Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DIS traded up $1.70 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $108.72. The stock had a trading volume of 8,630,547 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,000,367. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $112.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $99.76. The Walt Disney Company has a one year low of $83.91 and a one year high of $123.74. The stock has a market cap of $196.89 billion, a PE ratio of 40.12, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.73.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 14th. The entertainment giant reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.05. Walt Disney had a net margin of 5.44% and a return on equity of 9.21%. The business had revenue of $22.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.49 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.82 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast 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 disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is an increase from Walt Disney's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. This represents a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. Walt Disney's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.90%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DIS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Walt Disney from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Redburn Atlantic raised Walt Disney from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the company from $100.00 to $147.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Loop Capital upped their price objective on Walt Disney from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities increased their price objective on Walt Disney from $122.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $125.54.

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.