The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) Shares Sold by Fermata Advisors LLC

Fermata Advisors LLC reduced its holdings in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 43.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,131 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after selling 1,633 shares during the period. Fermata Advisors LLC’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $237,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. State Street Corp boosted 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 purchasing an additional 490,681 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 3.8% in 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 buying an additional 1,393,082 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 8.7% in 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 in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in Walt Disney by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 14,281,047 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,417,958,000 after acquiring an additional 425,438 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in Walt Disney by 3.4% in 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 acquiring an additional 454,678 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Walt Disney Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE:DIS opened at $107.07 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $193.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.43. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $111.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $99.62. The Walt Disney Company has a 12-month low of $83.91 and a 12-month high of $123.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The entertainment giant reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company 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 posted $0.82 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.41 EPS for the current year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $108.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Walt Disney from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $100.00 to $147.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Bank of America raised their target price on Walt Disney from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Walt Disney in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $120.00 price target for the company. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price objective on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $125.54.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related 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 transaction of $42,667,242.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 226,767 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,980,695.19. This trade represents a 62.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, 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 value of $917,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 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 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.