The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-five brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eighteen have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $123.67.

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America increased their target price on Walt Disney from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $115.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Raymond James reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Tuesday, October 1st.

Insider Activity at Walt Disney

In related news, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of Walt Disney stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.57, for a total value of $42,667,242.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 226,767 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,980,695.19. The trade was a 62.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Brent Woodford sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 44,055 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,005,529.10. This trade represents a 10.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walt Disney

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 77,596,191 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $7,463,978,000 after acquiring an additional 490,681 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Walt Disney by 3.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 37,672,320 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $3,609,833,000 after purchasing an additional 1,393,082 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in Walt Disney by 8.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 34,416,668 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $3,310,539,000 after purchasing an additional 2,765,389 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in Walt Disney by 10.8% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 14,883,983 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,477,831,000 after purchasing an additional 1,449,730 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 14,281,047 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,417,958,000 after buying an additional 425,438 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Walt Disney Price Performance

NYSE:DIS opened at $114.75 on Wednesday. Walt Disney has a 1-year low of $83.91 and a 1-year high of $123.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $103.07 and a 200-day moving average price of $97.73. The firm has a market cap of $207.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.42.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The entertainment giant reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $22.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.49 billion. Walt Disney had a return on equity of 9.21% and a net margin of 5.44%. Walt Disney’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.82 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Walt Disney will post 5.41 EPS for the current year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a positive change from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. This represents a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.90%.

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.