Pacer Advisors Inc. Has $16.02 Million Stock Position in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 6.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 143,851 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,322 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $16,018,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Walt Disney in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Walt Disney by 38.1% in the fourth quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 399 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Friedenthal Financial acquired a new stake in Walt Disney in the fourth quarter valued at $49,000. First PREMIER Bank increased its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 98.1% during the 3rd quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 517 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walt Disney in the 4th quarter valued at about $50,000. 65.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on DIS shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating and set a $125.00 target price on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. TD Cowen raised 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $115.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. They set a “hold” rating and a $120.00 target price for the company. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.52.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.57, for a total transaction of $42,667,242.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 226,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,980,695.19. This trade represents a 62.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Brent Woodford sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.62, for a total transaction of $568,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,055 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,005,529.10. This represents a 10.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 385,412 shares of company stock worth $44,153,263. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Walt Disney Price Performance

Walt Disney stock opened at $112.26 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $112.45 and a 200-day moving average of $100.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $203.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.73. The Walt Disney Company has a 52 week low of $83.91 and a 52 week high of $123.74.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The entertainment giant reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $22.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.49 billion. Walt Disney had a net margin of 5.44% and a return on equity of 9.21%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.82 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. This is an increase 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 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.