South Dakota Investment Council Cuts Stake in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

South Dakota Investment Council reduced its stake in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 1.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 238,999 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after selling 4,300 shares during the quarter. South Dakota Investment Council’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $26,613,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 8.4% in the third quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 66,744 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $6,420,000 after purchasing an additional 5,184 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Walt Disney by 1.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,411,205 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,001,454,000 after buying an additional 114,701 shares during the period. Brookstone Capital Management boosted its stake in Walt Disney by 10.5% during the fourth quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 140,883 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $15,687,000 after buying an additional 13,339 shares during the period. Summit Global Investments boosted its stake in Walt Disney by 476.0% during the third quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 12,379 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,191,000 after buying an additional 10,230 shares during the period. Finally, Avanza Fonder AB purchased a new position in Walt Disney during the fourth quarter worth $15,125,000. 65.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Walt Disney

In related news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 8,000 shares of the 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,054,870.70. This represents a 15.37 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Walt Disney Trading Down 1.7 %

Shares of DIS stock opened at $108.62 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 company has a market cap of $196.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.38, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.42. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $110.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $102.49. The Walt Disney Company has a 1-year low of $83.91 and a 1-year high of $123.74.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The entertainment giant reported $1.76 earnings per share 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%. On average, equities research analysts expect that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DIS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $137.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Prescient Securities dropped 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 note on Tuesday, February 4th. Macquarie reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $110.00 price objective on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Walt Disney from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $100.00 to $147.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on Walt Disney from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $125.44.

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.