ST Germain D J Co. Inc. Grows Holdings in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

ST Germain D J Co. Inc. grew its stake in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 38,796 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after buying an additional 302 shares during the quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $4,320,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in DIS. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Walt Disney during the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Birch Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walt Disney in the 4th quarter worth about $56,000. First PREMIER Bank increased its position in shares of Walt Disney by 98.1% during the 3rd quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 517 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walt Disney during the 3rd quarter valued at about $51,000. Finally, Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new stake in Walt Disney in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $57,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on DIS. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Macquarie restated a “neutral” rating and set a $110.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a research report on Monday. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Walt Disney from $108.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Walt Disney in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $120.00 price target on the stock. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walt Disney has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.54.

Walt Disney Stock Down 1.3 %

DIS traded down $1.41 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $108.35. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,006,923 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,975,758. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $110.85 and its 200-day moving average is $99.40. The Walt Disney Company has a 1 year low of $83.91 and a 1 year high of $123.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $196.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.98, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

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

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a yield of 0.6%. This is an increase from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio is 36.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walt Disney

In other news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.74, for a total transaction of $917,920.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 44,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,054,870.70. This trade represents a 15.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.57, for a total transaction of $42,667,242.84. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 226,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,980,695.19. The trade was a 62.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 385,412 shares of company stock worth $44,153,263. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Walt Disney

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.