New York State Common Retirement Fund Trims Holdings in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

New York State Common Retirement Fund cut its position in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS - Free Report) by 4.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,338,925 shares of the entertainment giant's stock after selling 98,925 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned about 0.13% of Walt Disney worth $260,439,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Farmers Trust Co. raised its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Farmers Trust Co. now owns 8,483 shares of the entertainment giant's stock valued at $945,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Pathway Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,471 shares of the entertainment giant's stock valued at $386,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the period. Prossimo Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Prossimo Advisors LLC now owns 8,732 shares of the entertainment giant's stock valued at $972,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the period. Saxon Interests Inc. raised its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Saxon Interests Inc. now owns 3,412 shares of the entertainment giant's stock valued at $380,000 after buying an additional 93 shares during the period. Finally, Abundance Wealth Counselors raised its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Abundance Wealth Counselors now owns 9,662 shares of the entertainment giant's stock valued at $1,076,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the period. 65.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Walt Disney Trading Down 0.7 %

DIS traded down $0.83 on Thursday, hitting $110.52. 5,963,402 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,224,447. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $102.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.68. The Walt Disney Company has a 12 month low of $83.91 and a 12 month high of $123.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $199.80 billion, a PE ratio of 36.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.42.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The entertainment giant reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.32. Walt Disney had a net margin of 6.07% and a return on equity of 9.95%. Sell-side analysts expect that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a positive change from Walt Disney's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. This represents a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. Walt Disney's dividend payout ratio is currently 32.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on DIS shares. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Walt Disney from $108.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Walt Disney from $116.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Walt Disney in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. They set a "hold" rating and a $120.00 price objective on the stock. Prescient Securities decreased their price objective on Walt Disney from $130.00 to $115.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Walt Disney from $115.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walt Disney has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $125.85.

Insider Activity at Walt Disney

In related news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 8,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.74, for a total transaction of $917,920.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,055 shares in the company, valued at $5,054,870.70. This represents a 15.37 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.57, for a total transaction of $42,667,242.84. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 226,767 shares of the company's stock, valued at $25,980,695.19. This represents a 62.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.