Motley Fool Asset Management LLC Acquires 3,342 Shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Motley Fool Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 7.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 50,399 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,342 shares during the quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $4,551,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Walt Disney by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 149,887,754 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $12,148,402,000 after purchasing an additional 994,575 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 0.4% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 44,318,444 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $3,592,010,000 after acquiring an additional 195,512 shares during the last quarter. Trian Fund Management L.P. grew its position in shares of Walt Disney by 411.6% during the 3rd quarter. Trian Fund Management L.P. now owns 32,868,307 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $2,663,976,000 after buying an additional 26,443,257 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Walt Disney by 10.6% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 24,859,476 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $2,014,861,000 after buying an additional 2,384,407 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of Walt Disney by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 20,776,815 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,683,961,000 after buying an additional 217,567 shares during the period. 65.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on DIS shares. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $129.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $112.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Daiwa Capital Markets reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $133.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Monday, April 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Walt Disney in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twenty-two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.08.

Walt Disney Price Performance

Shares of DIS stock traded down $1.18 on Thursday, reaching $112.74. The company had a trading volume of 8,033,218 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,853,280. The stock has a market capitalization of $206.80 billion, a PE ratio of 69.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The Walt Disney Company has a one year low of $78.73 and a one year high of $123.74. The business’s 50-day moving average is $114.16 and its 200 day moving average is $99.46.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The entertainment giant reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $23.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $23.71 billion. Walt Disney had a net margin of 3.36% and a return on equity of 7.88%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.99 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that The Walt Disney Company will post 4.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walt Disney Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 25th. Investors of record on Monday, July 8th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 8th. This represents a yield of 0.5%. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.52%.

Insider Activity at Walt Disney

In other Walt Disney news, EVP Sonia L. Coleman sold 1,857 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $536,448. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.