Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Cuts Stake in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. lessened its stake in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 9.4% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 31,189 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after selling 3,241 shares during the quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $3,816,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Walt Disney by 84.6% during the first quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 2,000,267 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $244,754,000 after acquiring an additional 916,772 shares in the last quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,037 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $997,000 after acquiring an additional 238 shares during the period. Telos Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Walt Disney by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Telos Capital Management Inc. now owns 74,767 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $6,751,000 after purchasing an additional 1,236 shares during the period. Valmark Advisers Inc. boosted its holdings in Walt Disney by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 7,744 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $699,000 after purchasing an additional 359 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC bought a new stake in Walt Disney in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,490,492,000. 65.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DIS has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Walt Disney from $130.00 to $128.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th. Loop Capital upped their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $113.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 6th. Finally, Moffett Nathanson reduced their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $130.00 to $125.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walt Disney currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $128.54.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director James P. Gorman bought 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $106.03 per share, for a total transaction of $2,120,600.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 20,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,170,116.01. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Walt Disney news, EVP Sonia L. Coleman sold 4,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.00, for a total transaction of $466,400.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director James P. Gorman acquired 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $106.03 per share, with a total value of $2,120,600.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 20,467 shares in the company, valued at $2,170,116.01. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Walt Disney Stock Performance

DIS opened at $90.16 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $164.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 97.75, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.40. The Walt Disney Company has a fifty-two week low of $78.73 and a fifty-two week high of $123.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.75. The company has a fifty day moving average of $99.38 and a 200 day moving average of $105.37.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 7th. The entertainment giant reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $22.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.12 billion. Walt Disney had a return on equity of 8.37% and a net margin of 1.90%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.93 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that The Walt Disney Company will post 4.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.