The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) Shares Acquired by Gateway Investment Advisers LLC

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC raised its stake in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 0.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 464,003 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,019 shares during the quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $51,667,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of DIS. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Walt Disney in the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Friedenthal Financial purchased a new position in Walt Disney in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. First PREMIER Bank lifted its position in Walt Disney by 98.1% during the third quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 517 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Walt Disney during the third quarter worth approximately $51,000. Finally, Birch Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walt Disney in the fourth quarter worth $56,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Walt Disney news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.74, for a total value of $917,920.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,054,870.70. This trade represents a 15.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of the company’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 value of $42,667,242.84. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 226,767 shares of the company’s stock, 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. In the last three months, insiders sold 385,412 shares of company stock valued at $44,153,263. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on DIS shares. Evercore ISI lifted their target price 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. Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Rosenblatt Securities increased their target price on Walt Disney from $122.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic upgraded Walt Disney from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $100.00 to $147.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Walt Disney presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $125.54.

Walt Disney Stock Down 0.3 %

Walt Disney stock traded down $0.37 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $107.81. The stock had a trading volume of 468,836 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,048,814. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $111.58 and a 200 day moving average price of $99.51. 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 cap of $195.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.43. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $22.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.49 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.82 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.41 EPS for the current year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

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

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.