Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) Price Target Raised to $130.00 at Morgan Stanley

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) had its target price hoisted by Morgan Stanley from $125.00 to $130.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an overweight rating on the entertainment giant’s stock.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on DIS. Loop Capital lifted their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $130.00 target price on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Wednesday. Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 target price for the company. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities boosted their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $122.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $125.85.

Walt Disney Stock Performance

NYSE:DIS opened at $112.15 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $112.11 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $100.99. Walt Disney has a twelve month low of $83.91 and a twelve month high of $123.74. The company has a market capitalization of $202.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.42.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The entertainment giant reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.32. Walt Disney had a net margin of 5.44% and a return on equity of 9.21%. As a group, research 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 declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This represents a dividend yield of 0.6%. This is a positive change from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walt Disney news, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.57, for a total value of $42,667,242.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 226,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,980,695.19. This represents a 62.15 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Brent Woodford sold 8,000 shares of Walt Disney stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.74, for a total transaction 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 approximately $5,054,870.70. This trade represents a 15.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 385,412 shares of company stock valued at $44,153,263 over the last 90 days. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brookstone Capital Management grew its holdings in Walt Disney by 10.3% in the 3rd quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 127,544 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $12,268,000 after buying an additional 11,864 shares during the last quarter. First PREMIER Bank lifted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 98.1% during 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 period. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in Walt Disney by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 8,109 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $780,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital increased its holdings in Walt Disney by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 16,289 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $1,505,000 after purchasing an additional 693 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BSN CAPITAL PARTNERS Ltd acquired a new stake in Walt Disney during the 3rd quarter valued at $19,410,000. 65.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.