Palisade Asset Management LLC Purchases 829 Shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Palisade Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 14.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 6,687 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 829 shares during the period. Palisade Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $604,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of DIS. Simmons Bank lifted its position in Walt Disney by 23.1% during the fourth quarter. Simmons Bank now owns 49,698 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $4,487,000 after purchasing an additional 9,327 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new position in Walt Disney in the fourth quarter worth $242,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Walt Disney by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 9,943,052 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $897,758,000 after acquiring an additional 211,397 shares during the last quarter. Northern Financial Advisors Inc purchased a new stake in Walt Disney during the fourth quarter valued at about $317,000. Finally, Aviance Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in Walt Disney by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 28,094 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $2,537,000 after purchasing an additional 513 shares during the last quarter. 65.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walt Disney Stock Down 9.5 %

DIS stock traded down $11.07 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $105.40. The stock had a trading volume of 55,026,769 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,064,021. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market cap of $193.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 65.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.40. The business has a 50-day moving average of $114.59 and a two-hundred day moving average of $101.21. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The entertainment giant reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.25. Walt Disney had a net margin of 3.36% and a return on equity of 7.88%. The company had revenue of $23.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $23.71 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.99 EPS. Walt Disney’s revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Walt Disney Company will post 4.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walt Disney Cuts Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Walt Disney

In other news, EVP Sonia L. Coleman sold 1,857 shares of Walt Disney stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.92, for a total value of $226,405.44. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on DIS. Argus raised their price objective on Walt Disney from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Loop Capital lifted their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $113.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Daiwa Capital Markets restated a “buy” rating and set a $133.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price objective on Walt Disney from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twenty-three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $127.17.

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.