Wright Investors Service Inc. Buys 3,643 Shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Wright Investors Service Inc. raised its stake in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 72.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,665 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after buying an additional 3,643 shares during the period. Wright Investors Service Inc.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $965,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Farmers Trust Co. boosted its holdings in Walt Disney by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Farmers Trust Co. now owns 8,483 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $945,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Smithfield Trust Co boosted its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 18,869 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $1,809,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Drucker Wealth 3.0 LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Drucker Wealth 3.0 LLC now owns 11,657 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $1,121,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Connable Office Inc. increased its position in shares of Walt Disney by 0.3% during the third quarter. Connable Office Inc. now owns 35,048 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $3,371,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the period. Finally, Cozad Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Walt Disney by 1.9% during the third quarter. Cozad Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,017 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $579,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Walt Disney

In other Walt Disney news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,055 shares in the company, 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of Walt Disney stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.57, for a total value of $42,667,242.84. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 226,767 shares in the company, valued at $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. Over the last three months, insiders sold 385,412 shares of company stock valued at $44,153,263. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DIS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Loop Capital increased their price target on Walt Disney from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Macquarie reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $110.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Rosenblatt Securities increased their price target on Walt Disney from $122.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Walt Disney presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $125.54.

Walt Disney Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE DIS opened at $108.08 on Tuesday. 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 market capitalization of $195.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.88, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.43. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $111.36 and a 200 day simple moving average of $99.47. The Walt Disney Company has a 12 month low of $83.91 and a 12 month high of $123.74.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last released 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 net margin of 5.44% and a return on equity of 9.21%. The company had revenue of $22.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.49 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.82 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

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

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.