Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund lifted its position in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS - Free Report) by 7.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 57,874 shares of the entertainment giant's stock after acquiring an additional 4,178 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund's holdings in Walt Disney were worth $6,444,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in DIS. Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 23.4% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 19,197,463 shares of the entertainment giant's stock worth $2,137,637,000 after acquiring an additional 3,636,742 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Walt Disney by 12,574.4% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,426,393 shares of the entertainment giant's stock worth $329,585,000 after buying an additional 3,399,359 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its position in Walt Disney by 8.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 34,416,668 shares of the entertainment giant's stock worth $3,310,539,000 after buying an additional 2,765,389 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in Walt Disney by 114.4% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,307,794 shares of the entertainment giant's stock worth $414,582,000 after buying an additional 2,298,921 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in Walt Disney by 112.0% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,142,991 shares of the entertainment giant's stock worth $398,508,000 after buying an additional 2,188,610 shares during the period. 65.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Walt Disney Trading Down 1.7 %
Shares of DIS traded down $1.93 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $108.62. The company had a trading volume of 9,064,386 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,249,324. The stock has a market cap of $196.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.42. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $102.39. The Walt Disney Company has a fifty-two week low of $83.91 and a fifty-two week high of $123.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.
Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The entertainment giant reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.32. Walt Disney had a net margin of 6.07% and a return on equity of 9.95%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.47 EPS 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were issued a $0.50 dividend. 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.57%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
DIS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $116.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and set a $125.00 target price on shares of Walt Disney in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Walt Disney from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $100.00 to $147.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Rosenblatt Securities restated a "buy" rating and set a $135.00 target price on shares of Walt Disney in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Prescient Securities dropped their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $130.00 to $115.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $125.85.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on DIS
Insider Buying and Selling at Walt Disney
In other Walt Disney news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 8,000 shares of Walt Disney stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.74, for a total value of $917,920.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,055 shares in the company, valued at $5,054,870.70. This trade represents a 15.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
Walt Disney Company Profile
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Free Report)
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.
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