Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at Citigroup

Citigroup upgraded shares of Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) to a strong-buy rating in a research report report published on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $120.00 target price on the stock. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Walt Disney from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $100.00 to $147.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Loop Capital lifted their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Five equities research 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 currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $125.52.

Walt Disney Price Performance

NYSE:DIS opened at $111.02 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $201.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.43. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $112.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $99.90. Walt Disney has a 12 month low of $83.91 and a 12 month high of $123.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) 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 return on equity of 9.21% and a net margin of 5.44%. The company had revenue of $22.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.49 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.82 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Walt Disney will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 represents a dividend yield of 0.6%. This is a positive change from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.62, for a total transaction of $568,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 44,055 shares in the company, valued at $5,005,529.10. The trade was a 10.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was 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 directly owns 226,767 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,980,695.19. The trade was a 62.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 385,412 shares of company stock worth $44,153,263. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Walt Disney

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in DIS. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 8.4% in the third quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 66,744 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $6,420,000 after acquiring an additional 5,184 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Walt Disney by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,411,205 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,001,454,000 after purchasing an additional 114,701 shares during the period. Brookstone Capital Management grew its position in Walt Disney by 10.5% during the 4th quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 140,883 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $15,687,000 after purchasing an additional 13,339 shares during the last quarter. Summit Global Investments increased its stake in Walt Disney by 476.0% in the third quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 12,379 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $1,191,000 after purchasing an additional 10,230 shares during the period. Finally, Avanza Fonder AB purchased a new stake in shares of Walt Disney in the fourth quarter valued at about $15,125,000. 65.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walt Disney Company 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.