Bailard Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Bailard Inc. lowered its stake in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 7.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 90,124 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after selling 6,982 shares during the quarter. Bailard Inc.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $10,035,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in DIS. Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 23.4% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 19,197,463 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $2,137,637,000 after buying an additional 3,636,742 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 8.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 34,416,668 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $3,310,539,000 after buying an additional 2,765,389 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 15.5% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 17,104,295 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,904,563,000 after buying an additional 2,300,912 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 114.4% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,307,794 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $414,582,000 after buying an additional 2,298,921 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 112.0% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,142,991 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $398,508,000 after buying an additional 2,188,610 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Walt Disney Trading Up 2.3 %

Shares of Walt Disney stock opened at $113.82 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The Walt Disney Company has a 1 year low of $83.91 and a 1 year high of $123.74. The company has a market capitalization of $205.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.42. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $110.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $103.35.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The entertainment giant reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.32. Walt Disney had a return on equity of 9.95% and a net margin of 6.07%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This is an increase from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. This represents a yield of 0.6%. Walt Disney’s payout ratio is 32.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on DIS. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Walt Disney in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. They set a “hold” rating and a $120.00 price target on the stock. Rosenblatt Securities restated a “buy” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective on shares of Walt Disney in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $116.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Prescient Securities reduced their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $130.00 to $115.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Macquarie restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $110.00 price objective on shares of Walt Disney in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Walt Disney has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $125.44.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walt Disney

In other Walt Disney news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.74, for a total value of $917,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,055 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,054,870.70. The trade was a 15.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by 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.