The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) Shares Purchased by V Square Quantitative Management LLC

V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its position in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 1.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 34,353 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 430 shares during the quarter. Walt Disney comprises about 0.5% of V Square Quantitative Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 25th largest position. V Square Quantitative Management LLC’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $3,825,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DIS. Jennison Associates LLC raised its stake in Walt Disney by 23.4% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 19,197,463 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $2,137,637,000 after purchasing an additional 3,636,742 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Walt Disney by 12,574.4% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,426,393 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $329,585,000 after purchasing an additional 3,399,359 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in Walt Disney by 8.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 34,416,668 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $3,310,539,000 after purchasing an additional 2,765,389 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in Walt Disney by 114.4% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,307,794 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $414,582,000 after purchasing an additional 2,298,921 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in Walt Disney by 112.0% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,142,991 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $398,508,000 after purchasing an additional 2,188,610 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walt Disney

In other Walt Disney news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 5,000 shares of the company’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 value of $568,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,005,529.10. This represents a 10.19 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 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 completion of the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. 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 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on DIS. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Walt Disney from $108.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Walt Disney from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $100.00 to $147.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Bank of America lifted their price target on Walt Disney from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Rosenblatt Securities restated a “buy” rating and issued a $135.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Monday. Finally, Macquarie restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $110.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Monday, January 6th. 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $125.85.

Walt Disney Stock Performance

Walt Disney stock opened at $109.56 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $111.41 and its 200 day moving average price is $101.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $198.06 billion, a PE ratio of 35.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.68. The Walt Disney Company has a one year low of $83.91 and a one year high of $123.74.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The entertainment giant reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.32. Walt Disney had a return on equity of 9.95% and a net margin of 6.07%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were given 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 is presently 32.57%.

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.