The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) Shares Purchased by First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. boosted its holdings in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 56.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 48,894 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 17,714 shares during the quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $4,415,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Evolution Advisers Inc. lifted its holdings in Walt Disney by 38.2% in the fourth quarter. Evolution Advisers Inc. now owns 380 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. Gradient Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Walt Disney by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Gradient Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,975 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $359,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the period. First Business Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in Walt Disney by 0.7% in the third quarter. First Business Financial Services Inc. now owns 16,514 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $1,338,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares during the period. Kelman Lazarov Inc. lifted its holdings in Walt Disney by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Kelman Lazarov Inc. now owns 3,583 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $324,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the period. Finally, CoreCap Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Walt Disney by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 24,096 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $2,176,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the period. 65.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on DIS. Daiwa Capital Markets reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $133.00 target price on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Monday, April 1st. UBS Group lifted their price target on Walt Disney from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Walt Disney from $128.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on Walt Disney from $115.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on Walt Disney from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twenty-two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.08.

Walt Disney Trading Down 0.6 %

DIS traded down $0.65 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $110.45. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 6,341,456 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,621,965. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The firm has a market cap of $202.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 68.18, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.42. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $114.22 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $100.25. The Walt Disney Company has a 52-week low of $78.73 and a 52-week high of $123.74.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The entertainment giant reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $23.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $23.71 billion. Walt Disney had a return on equity of 7.88% and a net margin of 3.36%. The firm’s revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.99 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Walt Disney Company will post 4.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Walt Disney Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 8th. Walt Disney’s payout ratio is currently 18.52%.

Insider Transactions at Walt Disney

In other news, EVP Sonia L. Coleman sold 1,857 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.92, for a total transaction of $226,405.44. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $536,448. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Walt Disney 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.