Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. Reduces Stock Position in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 8.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,149 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after selling 208 shares during the quarter. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $239,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Walt Disney in the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. First PREMIER Bank grew its position in shares of Walt Disney by 98.1% in the 3rd quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 517 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walt Disney during the 3rd quarter valued at $51,000. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new stake in Walt Disney in the third quarter worth about $57,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Walt Disney in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $64,000. 65.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Walt Disney

In other Walt Disney news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.62, for a total value of $568,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,005,529.10. This represents a 10.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 business’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 $25,980,695.19. This trade represents a 62.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 385,412 shares of company stock worth $44,153,263 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on DIS shares. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Walt Disney from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Macquarie reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $110.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a research report on Monday. Raymond James restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on Walt Disney from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $123.58.

Walt Disney Trading Down 0.2 %

Walt Disney stock traded down $0.26 during trading on Monday, reaching $110.90. 6,178,896 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,252,820. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $109.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $99.15. The company has a market capitalization of $200.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.92, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.43. The Walt Disney Company has a 52-week low of $83.91 and a 52-week high of $123.74.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The entertainment giant reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.05. Walt Disney had a net margin of 5.44% and a return on equity of 9.21%. The firm had revenue of $22.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.49 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.82 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

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

About Walt Disney

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.