John G Ullman & Associates Inc. Trims Holdings in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

John G Ullman & Associates Inc. cut its holdings in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 2.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 80,724 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after selling 2,075 shares during the quarter. Walt Disney makes up about 1.5% of John G Ullman & Associates Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. John G Ullman & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $9,877,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of DIS. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Walt Disney during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,938,647,000. Jennison Associates LLC bought a new position in shares of Walt Disney during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,490,492,000. ValueAct Holdings L.P. bought a new stake in Walt Disney in the fourth quarter worth $459,245,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Walt Disney by 8,681.3% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,349,709 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $302,445,000 after buying an additional 3,311,563 shares during the last quarter. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its position in Walt Disney by 34.8% in the fourth quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 6,646,336 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $600,098,000 after buying an additional 1,716,259 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on DIS. Guggenheim raised their price target on Walt Disney from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Loop Capital lifted their target price on Walt Disney from $113.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 6th. Macquarie boosted their price target on Walt Disney from $104.00 to $107.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, May 13th. Moffett Nathanson cut their price objective on Walt Disney from $130.00 to $125.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Argus boosted their price objective on Walt Disney from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twenty-three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Walt Disney presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $126.44.

Walt Disney Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:DIS traded down $0.37 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $96.60. 7,423,703 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,356,775. The Walt Disney Company has a 52-week low of $78.73 and a 52-week high of $123.74. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $102.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $104.89. 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 market capitalization of $176.11 billion, a PE ratio of 105.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.40.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 7th. The entertainment giant reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $22.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.12 billion. Walt Disney had a net margin of 1.90% and a return on equity of 8.37%. Walt Disney’s revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.93 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that The Walt Disney Company will post 4.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Walt Disney news, Director James P. Gorman acquired 20,000 shares of Walt Disney stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $106.03 per share, for a total transaction of $2,120,600.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 20,467 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,170,116.01. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director James P. Gorman bought 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $106.03 per share, with a total value of $2,120,600.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 20,467 shares in the company, valued at $2,170,116.01. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Sonia L. Coleman sold 4,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.00, for a total transaction of $466,400.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.